harmony2homeschool

Freebies from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine

2011-03-14T18:35:00.002-05:00

I love The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. They are offering 19 amazing gifts with a 2 year subscription right now. Read my complete blog about this offer by clicking here.

Goodbye for now

2011-02-01T16:11:00.002-06:00

I have to say goodbye for a bit. I know just a post prior to this one I shared of some grander things that I would like to do with my blog, but after much prayer I think I need to say goodbye for a bit. I am finding that any time that I have to blog is time I'm taking away from something that is more important. I don't know how long I will be away. When God gives me peace about logging back in, I will be back. If you want to leave your email in the comments section I will send you a personal email the next time I post so that you will know I'm back.

Homemade Caramel Corn

2011-01-22T18:15:00.002-06:00

Croix makes the best caramel corn and he made a batch tonight. We ate nearly the whole batch and then it ended as the 2 oldest squidgets squabbled over who was going to get the last piece or two. Now they have lost their sweet privilege so the small container that is left will be all mine and Croix's for our Sunday afternoon snack. :) So here's the recipe if you want to make some for yourself. It's very easy and very tasty!

7-8 cups popped popcorn-not microwave

3/4 cups packed brown sugar

6 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons light colored corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1) Remove all unpopped kernels from popped popcorn. Put popcorn into a 17 x 12 x 2 inch baking pan. We use a regular size cake pan.

2) In a medium sauce pan mix brown sugar butter and corn syrup. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils. Continue boiling at a moderate steady rate, without stirring for 5 more minutes.

3) Remove pan from heat. Stir in baking soda and vanilla. Pour mixture over popcorn; stir gently to coat. Bake in a 300* oven for 15 minutes. Stir mixture; bake 5 minutes more.
Spread caramel corn on a large piece of buttered foil to cool. Store tightly covered. Makes 7-8 cups.

Enjoy!

The Chore Lady

2011-01-22T08:43:00.002-06:00

So I decided long ago in my parenting journey that I didn't want to be the "Chore Lady." You know the mom who stays home who figures since she's home she should do everything for her little squidgets. The mom who always seems like a martyr when you talk to her because she's so miserable with all that she has to do at home.

We have had many chore systems in our home, but we have come to a new place in our chore lives. My 10 year old daughter is very obedient and loves to help me. She doesn't need a chart or a reward or even a reminder to get her chores done daily. Her main chore each day is the bathroom. She cleans the toilet, wipes down the vanity and tidy's up the bathroom each morning. What a blessing it is to always have a clean bathroom. It's such a blessing that when it's time to actually deep clean the bathroom it only take about 15-20 minutes. It's never really that dirty if I clean it (tub, mop floor, toilet, Windex, dust) weekly. Lilli does laundry and cooks. She vacuums, mops and generally anything that can assist me is something she wants to do. Isn't that a blessing! So for I no longer need a system for her.

For Lane, my 5 year old son, it's a different story. He generally does his chores without whining or complaining but keeping him on task is quite another story. He gets distracted easily. I would find myself asking him to do something in another room and by the time he got to the other room he was off in la-la land and had already forgotten his main task. So here's what I did:

I took a piece of lined notebook paper and I drew pictures of his morning chores. He is just starting to read so I drew pictures and wrote simple words. His morning chores are:

get dressed-so I drew clothes and wrote the words GET DRESSED

brush teeth-drew toothbrush & wrote BRUSH TEETH

make bed-drew a bed & wrote MAKE BED

empty all small trash cans into the one big trash-drew a trash can & wrote EMPTY TRASH

At the bottom of the page I wrote GOOD JOB!

I am not an artist by any means so these are just little pencil sketches that get the point across.

I then stuck the paper in a page protector and he leaves it on the kitchen table. He marks the items off with a dry erase marker as he does them. When all tasks are complete we wipe it off and it's ready for the next day.

Both children take turn being the meal helper. The rotation is every other week. I have tried assigning jobs for each child to do at every meal but that was too many people in the kitchen scurrying around. Then we tried every other day having a different meal helper, and that didn't work very well for us. Now each child takes a week at a time. The meal helper does a variety of jobs. Really anything that pertains to meal prep or clean up. One of the main things for this role is unloading the dishwasher. We run our dishwasher at least twice a day.

Squidget #3 is only 2 years old so he doesn't have many chores yet. He is learning to take his plate to the counter when finished eating and he also can get a towel and clean up his own spills. He throw diapers away and puts his dirty clothes in the basket. All squidgets help carry in wood on a daily basis-well 1,2, & 3 do. #4 is only 6 months old so he just watches and cheers for his older siblings while they work.

So these are some of the ways that I keep from being the "Chore Lady." Having the children help with the chores helps me to keep my joy as manager of my home and it also teaches my children to be helpers in the family and to take responsibility for the cleanliness and orderliness of the place the call home.

Thoughts

2011-01-21T08:38:00.008-06:00

Boys are already playing out in the snow at 9:48 am !!! It's very sunny and inviting. Not sure how much snow we have...may 5-7 inches. Supposed to get more Saturday and Monday.

I hear Lilli practicing the piano and it is music to my ears.(Pun intended :) )

Baby woke up at 9:30am once again covered in poop. The day before yesterday it was all over him and his bed. Lucky for me today it was just his clothes so I stripped him and bathed hime first thing.

Lijah is feeling much better today. Thank you Jesus. He was quite needy and crabby yesterday.

We started A Tree In The Trail by Holling C. Holling yesterday. I have never done unit studies with the children but we decided we needed to change things up a bit. So we are using A Tree In The Trail for science, history and geography. Earlier in the week I posted about our science experiment but science went down hill from there. I'd been feeling a bit bored with it and the children expressed the same thing so we've moved on to somethinn new.

I discovered that Lijah likes to sort. He started out sorting chips to a bingo game that Lane and I were playing. It kept him very still and very quiet. As we moved past the game I decided to give him beans and cups. That kept him entertained for 10-15 minutes.

I would like to find someone who would give me some free coaching on how to make my blog better and how to make a little money by monetizing. I'm uncertain about the technical side of these things. If anyone reading this would be willing to coach me or knows someone who would then leave me a comment.

I love my wood heat!

The Bible In 90 Days

2011-01-19T10:03:00.002-06:00

I am on 17 of Reading thru the Bible in 90 Days. I have read the entire bible in a year but I have never done anything as intense as this. I wanted to give you an update to what I've been learning and how I'm fitting it all in.

I must say I have learned more about God and his sovereignty in the last 17 days than I have in nearly all of my life. What the Bible in 90 Days reading plan does is it forces me to read large sections of scripture at one setting or at least in one day. It is very powerful to see chapter after chapter of how God had his hands in all of the details of history from creation, to the flood to the Israelites and there journey from captivity to freedom. I knew He was and is the orchestrator of his plans, but to read it in it's full context is very powerful. It's obvious to see that God accomplishes what he wants to accomplish in his time frame and to his glory.

I think the most challenging part of my reading so far has been the Levitical Law. All the does and don'ts have been a bit overwhelming, especially when I've been reading late at night. My husband and I are both doing the program and we have laughed about some of the laws. I am so thankful that God sent Jesus to be the ultimate sacrifice so that I don't have to live in such bondage and fear of always breaking the rules. My daughter is reading the bible through in a year, instead of the 90 Day plan and I have really enjoyed discussing with her the reading that she has done for the day. It's almost like I've ran ahead and know the "rest of the story" before she gets to it. We have had some wonderful dialog.

Since Croix and I are both doing the reading I find us setting in the dim living room in the evenings after the children are in bed reading and conversing. We have always talked about scripture and the way God is growing us, teaching us and refining us. It seems that since we are both reading the same scriptures our conversations are richer than normal. Even maybe a bit deeper as God reveals himself to each of us in a different way and then we are able to share it. I know that our relationship is benefiting greatly.

I have been challenged by fitting all of the reading in within a day. My children and I read Proverbs each morning and we do scripture memorization. This takes place before school starts. After school gets going and the hum of the house starts I don't find myself having moments to read. The 2 youngest children always nap from 1:00-3:00. I have been trying my best to get the reading done during that time. It only takes an hour, but I often don't get started right at nap time. I can get distracted with laundry, house cleaning and all of the other things I like to get done during this time each day. I have forced myself to let some things go a bit more than usual so that I can get some of the reading complete. Then at the end of the day I catch up on reading not completed when Croix.

One thing God has really ministered to me about is that the book that I should be exposed to most often and my children exposed to is the Bible. I am reading no other books right now besides the scripture. I am continually looking for ways to add more scripture into the day with the children. I had to repent for placing a higher precedence on other good literature than I was God's word. I can already tell the difference in my mindset and the atmosphere of my home as I bring God's word into a higher priority than it has ever been.

Week At A Glance

2011-01-17T17:09:00.002-06:00

Today-Monday-Martin Luther King's Day

First off lots of Bible reading as I'm reading through the bible in the next 90 days. I love, love, love it!

-Croix was off and we have enjoyed a delightful day. We did a science experiment this morning. We are doing Exploring Creation Through Astronomy from Apologia and this week we are focused on the moon. We did an experiment that looked at the different phases of the moon. We used a white Styrofoam ball and a lamp. It was a really great experiment!

Tuesday-Normal school day and piano lessons. Mom's Night at Sally's! Yippee!

Wednesday-School Day-AWANAS and youth bible study

Thursday-School Day-My friend and her daughter are coming for an afternoon visit.

Friday-Homeschool co-op and Family Movie Night

Saturday-Baby shower for my new friend and pastor's wife, Lisa.

Sunday-Family Day

What are you looking forward to this week? Leave me a comment and let me know.

Something funny!

2011-01-11T08:30:00.003-06:00

I read this post over at Raising Olives this morning and I thought I would share it with you. I cracked up! Click here to read it.

Barn Chores

2011-01-10T20:42:00.003-06:00

One thing you may not know about me is that my very first job was as a stable hand at Davis Ranch. I loved that job! I fed horses, shoveled lots of manure, exercised horses, cleaned tack, and other miscellaneous barn type things. I learned so much about horses, training, and the regular workings of a successful horse operation at my first job. Another job I had as a teenager was feeding horses and cleaning stalls for an older couple who raised thoroughbreds. The horses were born on their property and raised there until they turned 2 and then they were sent to the trainer and hopefully onto the race track. Both jobs were highlights of my teen years. So today when I got bundled up in my coveralls, gloves, hat, scarves and barn coat I was reminded of those jobs.

When Croix isn't home Lilli does the outside chores, but today she had a friend over and I volunteered to do the chores. The temperature is hovering in the 20's so I had to get bundled. I went to the barn with a hop in my step. I love the feel of the crisp air on my face when the rest of me is warm and cozy. I fed the chickens and horses. I broke ice in the water trough and spread hay for the horses when they were done with their grain. I also fed our 2 border collies, Lucky and Oreo. All of that brought back the good memories from years gone by and the warm fuzzy feelings inside of me that are saying YEA WE HAVE HORSES AGAIN AND I HAVE BARN CHORES! There's just something about ground corn and horse manure that makes me gitty!

The picture above is not of me or my farm. It's just an image I found on online :)

My Week at a Glance

2011-01-09T19:03:00.001-06:00

I've been thinking about the blogs that I read regularly. I've asked myself why do I read these blogs on a regular basis and what I've come up with is a small list. One of the things on the list is that they post specific things on a weekly basis. Meaning every Monday they may post about the weekend or every Wednesday they post something about being happy at home. You get the idea. So I've been thinking of my own topics to post on. I'm not going to share all of them with you right now, but today's post is one I hope to be a regular topic and it is my week at a glance.

This week has a little more variety in it than normal. Croix is going to some training in Indianapolis and his employer will be paying for the training and paying for the hotel so we haven't fully decided but I'm thinking we will be going at least one day to Indianapolis for the day and night. With that being said, I have to make adjustments to our school schedule to get everything in that I want to get accomplished in 3 days. I'm thinking we will go on Thursday all day and come back in time for co-op on Friday.

Monday-Keepers at Home-This is a club Lilli is a member of that teaches her all kinds of skills and crafts that will be helpful when she is a keeper of her own home. Tomorrow our meeting covers cake decorating. My role in the Keepers at Home club is to have a project to be demonstrated at each meeting. My friend, Joy, is coming tomorrow to teach cake decorating basics. The girls each have a project book and when they complete the projects they earn pins for a sash. Lilli has earned her 1st pin and it was for letter writing. She had to write lots of different kinds of letters and mail them to people. Interestingly enough, after she earned this pin she and a friend became pen pals. So tomorrow is Keepers and the boys always go to their great-grandparents, my grandparents, during this time. I think my Mamaw and Papaw Jo look forward to it once a month.

Monday is also the day that I check in my 90 Day Read thru the Bible accountability group. The reading is going great. I can't believe how much I'm learning. It is a lot of reading. Croix and I have been staying up until at least 11:00pm to complete the reading. I am so glad that I'm doing it though.

Tuesday-Lilli has a piano lesson.
The evening will be our monthly homeschool groups Mom's Night Out! This month it's just right up the road at my walking buddy's house. Sally is preparing dinner for everyone and then has invited a homeschool mom who has graduated 2 students. This particular family chose courtship as a means for their children to find mates. Lori, the mother, will share with the group why they chose courtship and what that looks like in comparison to dating. I am excited to hear her experiences as Croix and I have already decided that courtship will be the best option for our children as well.

Wednesday-Croix leaves for his training. We will have AWANAS and youth group that evening. I am teaching the youth girls in a girl's only bible study. I will be preparing for between now and Wednesday.

Thursday-I anticipate driving early in the day to Indianapolis. I want to stop in Mitchell at the library. I am in hopes to go to the Indy Children's Museum on Thursday afternoon. Nothing is set in stone yet and Croix and I haven't talked much about it yet, but that is just my hope. I know he will want to see us so I think he will agree.

Friday-Head back to Paoli so be there by 1:00 for homeschool co-op. Possibly that evening meet up with some of the girls from the church to play bunko.

Saturday & Sunday are free at this point!

Also, it's a given that we are doing school on the above days. I have lesson plans thru Wednesday and am thinking the Children's Museum will be a field trip day on Thursday and co-op on Friday. If something changes and we don't go to Indy then we will hit the books as usual.

So that's my week at a glance. Leave me a comment and let me know what your own personal highlight is going to be from your week-at-a glance this week. Anything special going on? Birthdays, outing, preparing a new recipe, & etc.

Thoughts

2011-01-05T21:12:00.002-06:00

Random thoughts in my head from the past day or two:

90 Day Bible reading is going soooooo great. It is a lot of reading, but I am really enjoying it. Croix is still up reading his and that's why I have time to blog.

Croix and I nearly always try to go to bed at the same time. I like to snuggle and talk before dozing off. Sometimes it's the only time in the say in which we actually get to converse with each other.

Really thankful that my in-laws weren't hurt worse than they were in the car accident they were in yesterday.

The Happy Birthday Jesus party at church with children, parents, and students went great tonight. 91 teens and children present. The party was postponed due to weather before Christmas.

I love teenagers!!!!!!

I love them so much that I'm giving up my husband Friday and Saturday so he can take 3 young men to a leadership summit at Highland Lakes.

I've been battling some type of infection related to breastfeeding. Stayed in bed nearly all day today, thanks to my amazing Lilli, who tended to the boys. I am feeling so much better.

Since I slept most of the day we didn't do school and so we will play catch up tomorrow.

Meal planning and grocery shopping on the slate for tomorrow afternoon or evening.

I need a birthday gift for my cousin who's party is Friday night. I'm thinking a practical joke would be funny. Or even a mean card about about getting older.

Co-op starts back on Friday. I have had 2 new people communicate with me about attending co-op this semester. One was a new homeschooler to our area that I met at church tonight.

Since I slept so much today I'm not sure how tired I'm going to be when Croix's ready to call it a night.

I can't forget to get Ledjer out of his car seat and lay him in his bed when I go to bed. No, he's not still in the car. He was asleep when we came in so I just left him sleeping in the seat.

Horses for Christmas

2011-01-03T19:18:00.003-06:00

Lilli and Lane both got their very own horses for Christmas this year. This picture is not a picture of one of our new horses, although Lane's is a bay which is like the picture. Lane's horse's name is Jeff. Lilli got a sorrel mare named Nehigh.

I have pictures, but for some reason I can't get them to upload so I will continue to work on that, but until then I wanted you to know we have been enjoying our new pets. I'm not sure who was more excited....the parents or the children? We grew up with horses and that was one of the common things that drew us together as a young couple. For a variety of reason we haven't had horses over the last 10 years, but the Lord is blessing us with our favorite animal again.

Croix has a young filly named Jade that his parents gave him. He's been breaking it to ride. We also have an old mare that has been great for the children to learn to ride on. It belongs to Croix's parents. All summer we had my dad's old gelding here for Lilli to show in 4-H. We sent him home for the winter. He won't be returning now that Lilli has a horse that she can call her own.

I am looking so forward to getting back in the saddle myself. I love, love, love riding. It's my favorite thing to do be it on a trail in the woods or working in a show ring. I have had a detour from riding as I got caught up in my career and then have been busy having and raising babies.

It feels as if we are entering into a new season of living. Croix and I both sense it. We feel very complete as a family, not to say there won't be more Hodges babies, but right now we think our family is just the way God intended it to be. We are anticipating getting back to our horse ridin, manure cleanin, Wrangler wearin roots! I hope to document more of our life in pictures. I'm glad your along for the ride.

Areas of Focus for this semester

2011-01-02T18:51:00.003-06:00

Children more aware and familiar with the Arts:
*Looking at pictures of famous pieces in picture books that we own and looking for more books at the library.
*Listen to more classical music and do a study of Chopin that includes a read aloud chapter book and a cd of Chopin's work.
*Visit and art museum

Scripture Memorization
* Memorized the first half of Romans 12 the first semester and I want to complete the chapter by the end of this semester.

Lilli-Master her mulitipulcation tables.

Lane-Finish Sing Spell Read & Write book that he is in and also finish the Horizons math book that we started for kindergarten.

Visit a planetarium to go along with our astronomy science studies.

Visit Medieval Times in Chicago to go along with our history studies.

My personal areas:
Do the Bible in 90 Days
Blog more often
Finish Romans 12
Stay on top of my housekeeping duties :)

I'm taking the 90 Day Challenge

2011-01-01T00:55:00.003-06:00

So you saw the gadget at the top of the page and you get the idea that I'm going to read thru the Bible in the next 90 days!

Croix, Lilli and I are all 3 going to do it. When I was building my career in Mary Kay, I learned or was taught, that you could do anything intense for 90 days. By the time your 90 days was up you would have formed a new habit, have moved up a career level and/or etc.

When I saw this challenge I knew it was for me. I have been saying that I was going to read the bible in a year, which I have done before, but I needed something massive. MASSIVE ACTION brings RESULTS! I love results! I want to be so into God's word that I know it forward and backwards. I want him to knock my socks off with the freshness of his inspired scriptures.

I can't wait to get started. So is anyone with me? If you are click on the banner above and get going. Even if your reading this after Jan. 3 start anyway and let your 90 days carry over a bit. If you take the challenge leave me a comment and let me know so that we can hold each other accountable.

Homemade Laundry Soap

2010-12-30T12:01:00.003-06:00

Making laundry soap is one of the easiest things I have ever done to save money, next to baby wipes that is. :)

Grate any bar of soap that you have in the house. We use zest soap so that's what I use. I use my cheese grater to grate it.

Put the grated soap in a small pot and cover it with water.Cook it until the soap is completely melted into the liquid.

Pour the melted soap into 2 gallons of hot water. Stir and add 2 cups of baking soda.

That's it! This formula does a great job at getting our clothes clean. I still treat all stains with Dawn dish washing soap. Dawn works as well as Shout and is more economical. I do sometimes have to rewash or pre-soak pukie baby clothes and bibs in Borax before washing to get the scent out but other than that this soap is fabulous!

Monday Musings

2010-10-25T11:57:00.002-05:00

Got this idea from Kimberly over at Raising Olives. She posts once a week or so sarcastically about the things "she did not" let her children do. So here goes:

I did not buy cereal for my children to eat for breakfast. Of course I didn't let them eat nearly the whole box over the course of a few hours this morning. I did not find that allowing them have cereal made for more pleasant seat work for morning school and a more pleasant toddler during that time as well. I would absolutely never ask my husband to buy more cereal when he calls home to tell me he is at WalMart.

I did not sit the baby in his car seat in the laundry room while I was making laundry soap with the idea that the front load washer and dryer would entertain him for a while and I did not leave him there for an extended period of time afte the soap was made.

I wouldn't even think about letting 2 of my children take a bb gun and an air soft gun out of the gun cabinet and use them to run off a stray dog. I would never let them do that unattended.

Homemade Baby Wipes

2010-10-25T10:33:00.002-05:00

I made some baby wipes and they are working great! I can't take credit for the recipe. These wipes are so simple and so cheap to make.

Here's what you need:
Roll of paper towels-I recommend Bounty or another sturdy brand.
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 Tbs. baby bath or baby shampoo
1Tbs. baby oil

Use an electric knife to cut the roll of paper towel in half. Each half will go into its own container. I use 2 empty ice cream buckets. Pull the cardboard tube out of the center.

Mix the boiling water, soap & baby oil. This mix is enough to pour over both halves of paper towel. Turn the paper towel so that it soaks up the liquid. If you need to add a bit more water to the center of each roll you can.

Pull a piece of paper towel from the center of the roll and the wipes will pull out easily. Put the lid on and your ready to go.

3 Thoughts:
-I expected these to dry out, but they didn't.
-I am used to using the store bought wipes with the container that pops the wipe up. I saved a couple of empty containers to use but they wouldn't work for the round shape of the wipe. I have thought about cutting a slit in the top of the ice cream bucket lid, but I'm afraid this will dry them out. If you have an idea about this let me know.
-Cheap, cheap, cheap!!!

We've turned the corner

2010-09-25T20:16:00.002-05:00

We've turned the corner...Praise Jesus!

So if you know me from a distance it's looked like things at the Hodges house have been going pretty well since Ledjer arrived, We have done well transitioning most areas of our lives like school, grocery shopping, bed time routines and what not. But our leisurely family times have been total chaos and mayhem. Take Saturdays for instance,we would have a picture of a great family day together but Lijah would be crabby, Ledjer would want to nurse all day, Lilli would want to be with friends and Lane would just want attention. We tried to get away Labor Day weekend and we ended up coming home early because the babies hadn't slept and Croix and I were exhausted. We were just beginning to think total chaos was the new norm and we were going to have to learn how to survive it.

I share that only because today I think we turned the corner on Family Day at the Hodges house. We slept in (because Lijah stayed all night with Mamaw and Ledjer is sleeping all night now)! We picked Lijah up and went to the Farmer's Market in Orleans. The weather was fabulous. It so happened that my sister was there with her children. My older 2 played at the playground while I looked around a bit with my younger ones. Ledger was in the Snugli carrier and Lijah in a stroller. Since my sister was there she pushed Lijah. I purchased a beautiful red pepper and a green one too. We like to simply slice up red peppers and eat them with a meal. The kids also like them with ranch dressing.

I watched the children play for a good while, nursed the baby, talked to a new acquaintance about homeschooling and also saw an old high school pal that I hadn't seen in years. As we were walking back to the van, we stopped at a vendor who was selling pumpkins, and Lane picked a pretty big one out for us. It was a fabulous time.

When we returned home the 3 older children played outside until nearly 1:00. Ledjer napped and I picked up toys in the yard. I also straightened the front porch and arranged the pumpkin and some other flowers. The children asked for a snack...could it be outside on a blanket.....could it be hash browns? Since we hadn't had lunch we decided to make a big breakfast, use our good dishes and eat it on a blanket under the shade tree out front. Lilli and I made blueberry pancakes, hash browns, and bacon and smokey links. We filled a big basket and carried everything out. I'm telling you it was glorious. I felt like I was dreaming. We were having the best time together. Even Ledjer played on his Boppy pillow and talked to the trees while we ate.

By the time the meal was over and all is cleaned up it was time for Lijah's nap so I put him down and Ledjer too. Lilli and Lane and I stay outside on soft cushion and read a really great book we had started earlier in the week. After a while of that, they decide to build beds and chairs in the leaves. Talking about beds makes me want a nap so I took one!

After everyone woke up, we went to visit Croix's grandmother. The kids ate way too much candy. We stayed for about an hour and then come home for more outside play. Lane learned to ride his bike with no training wheels. We ordered a carryout pizza and took it to the park and ate it and then played there until dark. As we were leaving Croix commented about what a great day it has been. I told him I thought we'd turned the corner on what a family day was supposed to look like for us. I told him everything was so simple but so enjoyable the entire day.

So a few things I'm taking away from today:
-simplicity is a necessity
-it takes 3 months for my family to get used to a new family member
-I should lower my expectations for the 1st 3 months
-nap when needed
-eat out when needed :)

So to end this great day I'm going to put my sleeping baby in his bed and snuggle up for a movie with my man.

Life Is Full!

2010-09-23T19:02:00.002-05:00

I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted. Where has the time gone? My life is so wonderfully full that I just don't have much time to blog. By the time all of the children are settled into bed I'm brain dead and don't have many brain cells left to blog or I want to visit with Croix. I'm not going to try to catch up on all the wonderful happenings we will just start with today.
We had a wonderful school day. I love the Charlotte Mason approach to home educating. I told Croix at lunch that I wished that I would have been as gentle with Lilli in kindergarten as I am currently with Lane. I just know better now. :) He loves to learn. Lilli is still working on multiplication in math. She likes timing herself saying the multiplication tables. I fold laundry at the kitchen table while she recites her times tables by stop watch. She loves a challenge. She wants to beat herself each time. She has been writing some poetry and continuing to learn about sentence structure. It's so wonderful that she loves to read so much because the living book is so much better a teacher than a workbook page when it comes to punctuation, verbs and nouns and capitalization.
The 3 older children made salt dough models of Mercury today. After the planet was formed, they took stones to symbolize asteroids and made indentions in the dough to make a crater like surface. Lijah ate nearly all of his dough (Yuck) and enjoyed playing in the mess. As a matter of fact the other two used there extra flour to cover there faces. Flour was all over the kitchen by the time the project was complete. I don't mind because I know they will never forget that Mercury is full of craters.
We started reading Sir Gawain and The Green Knight today as part of our history. We finished a wonderful prose about Beowulf. The children both loved the style of writing. I enjoyed reading it as well. I think they would enjoy Shakespeare after seeing their faces as we read through Beowulf. I intended to make quill pens and ink this week, but we didn't get to it. I carried it over to lesson plans for next week. I need to go out in the field behind our house this weekend and look for walnuts, because the recipe for the ink calls for 6 walnuts.
We have co-op tomorrow and then the tailgate party tomorrow night. Croix and I are hosting a tailgate party for our church and community before the local high school football game. We are in hopes to share the gospel with at least 100 people. We have some really neat tracks from pro football player, Tim Tibo. I don't know if that's how you spell his name but anyway we are going to be giving them out to people who come to the party.
Ledjer is 3 months old now. He is wonderful. I can't imagine life without the little squidget. What a blessing!
So that's my day in a nutshell. I hope I get to post sooner next time. :)

What a week

2010-08-20T21:26:00.002-05:00

So this was our 2nd full week of school. Things got a little bit more realistic this week. :)

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were great days academically. Thursday and Friday were so-so.

Socially we went a little over the top. Tuesday afternoon we invited friends over to play who we asked to stay for supper. 3 other neighborhood friends joined in on the food and fun and we all had a great time. Wednesday AWANAS started back at church so that put us out of the house for the evening. Thursday evening Lilli and I took a meal to a friend who had a baby a week ago. The family has a daughter the same age as Lilli and she came home for a sleepover. The friend stayed and played all day Friday. I bribed Lane to get his school work done quickly by letting him invite his cousin over to play when he was finished. I know it's only the 2nd week of school and I'm already bribing. :) Our homeschool group kick off was tonight. I help with the leadership of the group so it was a big evening. Plus, it was at our church so that meant setting up and tearing down. So we are just now settled in at home at 10:00.

Not quite sure what the rest of the weekend will hold. I do know that I am going to have a date with Croix tomorrow night. That's exciting! We won't go far or be gone long but I'm looking forward to some time with him.

My family is waiting for me to watch a movie with them and Ledjer is crying in his bed. He's giving me the word that he's not ready to call it a night yet so until next time...

Back Into The Groove

2010-08-11T17:56:00.002-05:00

What a great day we had at the Hodges Homeschool!

The children are taking very well to their lessons. I still haven't started Latin. I'm still working up my nerve to get going. I know once we start we need to consistently stick with it so I don't want to start until I've got my full "game face on" and am ready to press on even if it's not fun.

I had a date to Lane this afternoon. My mother kept Lilli and Lijah. Of course, Ledjer went with Lane and I. He went to the dentist and then he wanted to go to Salem to McDonald's playland and play and get ice cream. I had a wonderful time with him. It's nice to watch him interact and converse away from his siblings. He instantly made friends with the other kids in the play land. I had bought him gum at Walmart and he offered some to his new friends. He is very generous and caring towards others. I told him that one of his friends had rode the bus today since public school started today. He said, "You mean he goes away for school?" I said yes and he said, "I like school at home better." That blessed me so much! I remember with Lilli wondering and hoping we were making the right decision when it came to schooling at home. I haven't had those questions with him, but to hear him say that blessed me so much.

A friend from our homeschooling co-op brought dinner this evening. She called and said she had missed out when the group provided meals and could she still bring a meal. I said "YES!" Her son and husband came along for the drop off and we enjoyed a nice visit. They brought us roast, potatoes and carrots and fresh tomatoes. Very tasty! It was such a gift not to have to make supper. I told my family if we could find someone to bring dinner in every night that would be fabulous. Of course they looked at me like I was loony. A mom can dream.

We have started having family devotions after dinner and before the table is cleared. It is going so much better than right before bed. We are working on scripture memory in the morning and in the evening. It's neat to have Croix participate in the evening. We make up motions to help us remember the words. It's really helping. We all have to recite individually on Friday evening.

The 2 oldest children are now dancing to some great Christian music right beside me here in the kitchen. I love to see them praising and enjoying music that glorifies the Lord.

I feel like I have caught my breath today. I don't if that makes much sense, but sometimes we go through seasons where we are gasping. With the transition of the baby, starting back to school and some other things I've been gasping on the inside. Today I'm breathing slowly and calmly. Glory to Jesus for that!

Our First Day of School

2010-08-09T17:37:00.002-05:00

Hmmmm.....I sit here this evening realizing that my 2nd child started his official homeschooling journey today. It was a good day! Lane enjoyed all that we did. I can tell he loves to learn and I want to do everything I can do keep that love alive.

Lilli started 4th grade today. How can it be? She just came in from outside with her voice raised and her temper flared! We brought a new horse onto the farm today and she isn't interested in eating. She's still getting acclimated with her surroundings, but Lilli thinks she should be eating. Plus, the chickens are going to ear her grain if she doesn't get to it. Lilli likes to keep thing under control and often horses aren't that predictable or controllable. :) We didn't start or finish her first Latin lesson today. I'm hoping to do it this evening when Croix is here to coral the boys. I'm a little apprehensive about it. I only know what I've read in her material when it comes to Latin. We should both learn quite a bit this year.

Lijah stayed all night with Croix's parents last night. Note to self: make sure every first day of school the toddlers are at Mamaw's. :) Made things go much smoother than if he had been here. We have our special helper, Lauren, coming tomorrow to be with him during school. I have a few household things for her to do too.

Ledjer slept for most of the morning. When Croix's dad brought Lijah home we invited him to stay for lunch. Ledjer woke up for a little while, but not long. Croix mother came about an hour later and visited with the children. It worked out nicely because Lil and Lane wanted to go with Papaw when he was leaving and I allowed it. Croix' s mother was still here so I put Lijah down for his nap and then she had Ledjer all to herself. We are so blessed to have family so close. My children are especially blessed to spend time with their grandparents!

The rest of the week look pretty mellow. School tomorrow and then my sister is bringing her daughter for a haircut. Public school starts back on Wednesday and Callie needs a trim before then. Wednesday afternoon Lane has a dentist appointment and then he and I (& Ledjer) are going to have a date and he wants to go bowling. My mom is keeping the other children. That evening one of my friends from the co-op asked if she could bring dinner because she didn't get a chance to when we first came home from the hospital. I am so thankful for that, because with school, dentist and date I will be pretty tired when it comes supper time. Thursday we will have school and then that evening we are going to take a meal to friends who are remodeling their house and they are on a deadline. We can't really help with the remodel but we wanted to do something so we are taking dinner into them on Thursday and afterwards we are heading to the library. Friday we are going to do school and then have a family night. We are going to have a Roman Soldier Meal! This is part of our history for the week. Saturday Lilli and I were invited to a birthday party and that evening we are going to serve together as a family at an event called Party In The Park. I'm not exactly sure what it's all about, but our church is participating and so we volunteered. Sunday is church and we have a guest preacher who is in the running to be our pastor. Another birthday party that evening for Cage, my nephew and that will be our week. I know Sunday starts the week, but for us it it ends the week.

As I look back over the above list it seems pretty full. Hmmm I was thinking by starting school we would be home more. :) We'll see. Onto day 2.

The a/c is off!

2010-07-30T13:11:00.002-05:00

When I stepped outside this morning I found a nice surprise.....the humidity had dropped drastically. So much so that I came in and turned off the air conditioning and opened the windows. I love the breeze blowing through the house, fresh air airing things out and the sound of the birds singing. All of my blessings are napping, including Lilli. She spent the evening swimming and playing on her friend's zip line so she needed a rest.

I think summer is winding down. I know I said that in my post about a month ago, but now I really think it is. I'm settled into a routine with the baby and I can visualize a school day. Plus, a recent homeschool grad asked me if she could be my helper 2 days a week.
I was thrilled at her offer and that makes the end of summer and the start of school very promising. I'm excited to get started with Lane. He will have official school work this year. He's matured a lot over the past couple of months. He's ready for some new learning!

We are having a cook-out tonight. It will be wonderful sitting outside and visiting. The menu consists of burgers, mac & cheese, baked beans, watermelon & peach cobbler & ice cream. We have a cookout to go to tomorrow evening too and a reunion on Sunday. The eating will be good this weekend.

I'm just about to my pre-baby weight. Sally and I walked last night. I thought I wasn't going to make it back home. I am really out of shape, but with walks it will come back. I guess that's it for now. I'm looking forward to more regular blog posts when school starts.

Ledjer is here!

2010-07-14T18:51:00.002-05:00

I'm finally getting the time and the energy to post after our newest arrival. Ledjer Isaiah Croix Hodges arrived Sat. June 26. My due date was July 11, so I was surprised and excited to meet him sooner than expected. Delivery went great and he's doing wonderful. Everyone else is adjusting well too. Lijah hasn't been jealous and the older kids just act like miniature parents. Croix and I feel extremely blessed to have 4 healthy children.
Summer has been great. I'm about ready to wrap it up and get started back to school. Looked through all of our books today for the upcoming year. I'm getting excited. I'm not sure that we will start any earlier than we usually do, but we have been out since the 1st week of May so it seems like summer should be about over. From the looks of my children's social lives we still have more activities to participate in before they will be ready to call it quits.
Lilli has her 4-H horse show this weekend. They also will have Cousins Day on Wednesdays through the 2nd week of August. All of the older kids go to my mom's along with their cousins and do fun things once a week. It's given a nice break to rest with the baby. Lilli & Lane are going to spend a couple of days mid August with some family in northern Indiana. I am going to go pick them up and stay a few days with myself along with the younger boys. I think my mom might go along too. So now that I think about we have some fun summer activities left. I better enjoy them while I can because about November I will be ready for a little break, wishing for some lazy summer days.

Ergo giveaway over at RaisingOLives

2010-06-18T20:05:00.003-05:00

I have found a website that I love! It's called www.raisingolives.com. It's a mom who is about to birth her 10th child. They are homeschoolers. She posts about school, housekeeping, crazy days and everything in between. She even has neat video tutorials like how to make a fancy pony tail. My daughter saw the banner for it and she wanted me to watch the tutorial and then do it on her. I have have heard the the ERGO baby carrier is one of the greatest on the market. I wore my last baby a lot, but I have worn each baby some. I intend on wearing the baby we are to have in 3 weeks all of the time. So I was excited to see that Raising Olives is doing a giveaway. Check it out and register for yourself @ www.raisingolives.com

Aaaah....Summer....I'm loving it!

2010-06-09T08:53:00.002-05:00

We are enjoying the lazy days of summer. Everyone is getting the hang of sleeping in, including Lijah. He usually wakes up about 6:30 but he will go back to sleep if I lay him down with me. He will then sleep until nearly 8:00. Yes, I am sleeping that late too! I figure in 5 short weeks sleep is going to be harder to get than it is now so I'm letting myself off the hook and sleeping as late as possible.
Ledjer will make his appearance around July 11. We are hoping for a vaginal birth, but I have to go get another ultrasound next Friday to see if he is still breech. I'm not up for the Dr. trying to change his position. Just the thought of it makes me sick to my stomach, so that would mean a scheduled c-section. I know God has the perfect plan so I'm not going to be worrying about it.
I couldn't sleep last night and I was just imagining what my baby boy was going to look like, him nursing, him snuggling with the other kids. I can't wait to meet him.
Sunday we leave for church camp. We have partnered with Rob and Aimee and Syria church and we are taking 6 students from our church and doing a kids camp. Croix and I are really excited about it. Our own children are stoked too. Then we have a week off and then bible school. Our role is planning the family night. I haven't done lots towards it but I will the week after camp. I can only focus on so many things at once. Lilli has the 4-H fair July 17, 18, & 19. I hope that I get to be there. She has been riding her horse and we have been working on project books towards her project.
The kids have quite the social life this summer. Our homeschool group is playing baseball on Tuesday mornings. Lilli is involved in the Keepers of the Home club that just started. I led the badge talk and activity this week. We did a 2 mile hike at Pioneer Mother's Forest. To be this pregnant it wasn't too bad of a hike. The children went to Day Camp bible school at Syria last Thursday. It was a science theme that focused on how God is in science. They loved it. Last night they went to Dogwood for VBS. It's a Sea theme with the focus being on Paul. They want to go back tonight. I think I will take them and get groceries while they are there. Last but not least they had their first Cousin's Day last week. So they are enjoying there summer. I am enjoying a relaxed atmosphere at home. Yesterday I stayed in my p.j.'s all day. I'm still in them now, but I'm going to get dressed at some point because we need to go get animal feed. The boys are outside playing in the rain. Hey, it's summer, why not?
I am so blessed to be a mother and a wife. I feel like I have finally resolved myself to this high calling that God has placed on me. I am no longer interested in pursuing my own thing My own thing is training up my children and being a helpmete to my husband. I'm loving it.

1st week of Summer Break

2010-05-20T16:03:00.001-05:00

I have to be quite honest when I say this has been a hard week for me. It started off with a sleepless night Sunday, then Monday and on into Tuesday. Wednesday I did get good rest. Lijah has been a handful this week. His temper is really showing itself. We haven't had much structure and I thrive on structure. I haven't had much adult conversation and that's a necessity. So finally yesterday evening when I heard myself saying to me, "I'm not significant. I need to so something for myself. Is this all there is to my life?" I realized I need to get a grip so I headed for ice cream. :) Yes, a sweet treat and some time to get my thoughts out of Satan's control and into my Savior's and now I'm all good.

Rested well last night. I am sleeping on the couch right now. For a variety of reason, but the main one is that it's closer the the bathroom and I don't get so woke up in my multiple trips and I can get back to sleep quicker just going back to the couch. The only downside to this is I'm missing the snuggle time with Croix. :) Lijah woke up at 6:30 instead of 6:00 in a good mood, which of course improves my mood. We visited with a girlfriend at her place. I put a roast in the crock pot this morning so it's making the house smell fabulous right now.

I just made a list of all I could so away from home in the next 48 hours.
Lilli's piano lesson
Homeschool co-op meeting
Take library books back to Paoli and Mitchell
Amish Store
Farmers Market
Buy a birthday gift for the party Lilli has on Saturday
Hit a big yard sale I like to go to annually
Tyson's grad party
Small group outing

Whew....now if that isn't a social life. I don't know that we will participate in all of those things, but I do better having away from home activities as options instead of just feeling like I'm home with the kids day in and day out. I love being with my babies, but I like being with them out and about town too.

So that's our first week of summer break in a nutshell. I think it's going to end up pretty good and I know that my willingness to be home with my children and my desire to be a child of the King makes me significant!

Kregal Publishing-Trouble with Treasure

2010-05-19T13:17:00.004-05:00

This book really held my attention. This year I have used chapter books and novels as read alouds for my children. I didn't have time to do that for this review so read it to myself in a couple of settings. It had mystery, suspense and adventure.

Some young people take off on horseback to pan for gold and visit a mountain saw mill. The story is all about their journey. Before they ever leave they are unreasonably thrown into jail by an unfair jailer. They run into him again later in the story as the plot takes an interesting twist and the jailer himself ends up in jail.

This is the 5th book in the Circle C Adventure Series from Susan Marlow. From the reading of Trouble With Treasure I could recommend the other 4 books in the series. I look forward to reading them myself.

To purchase this book click here or to see the other books in the series.

LobsterNetwork.com

2010-05-19T12:59:00.002-05:00

www.LobsterNetwork.com
Don't Need It? Give It!
Share Your Stuff!
LobsterNetwork is a one of a kind item networking utility that helps you keep track of your stuff, and if you choose, to share your stuff with friends. You can use it to borrow a movie from a friend and LobsterNetwork will keep track of the loan. You can lend your items to people and the network will keep track of it for you. You can also use the system to buy, sell and trade items.

LobsterNetwork is a FREE membership website. You do have to be a member to utilize the service. It's a great way to track things borrows and loaned. As a part of a homeschooling co-op group I am always lending or borrowing books, curriculum and other resources from other families. This would be a great way to keep track of these transactions. I also loan books out to people in my church and www.LobsterNetwork.com could be helpful in that respect too.

I think this is a great idea and one that could make record keeping simpler for anyone who loans, borrow, buys, sells or trades.

U.S. gov & politics AP* Exam Prep

2010-05-19T11:30:00.003-05:00

www.Cerebellum.com
U.S. gov & politics AP* Exam Prep Home Video Learning

I wasn't looking forward to this review and I have been putting it off. My children are young and I knew it would be a while before I needed to think about college placement exams. What a blessing I now feel this review has been. If I had a Jr. or Sr. High student we would be using all of the DVD's that Cerebellum has to offer for college exam helps. I am reviewing this product as part of my participation in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Review Crew.

The product contains 2 discs. One disc is a video explaining the different components of the exam and 30 key topics in 30 minutes. Test-taking advice is also offered. The dvd portion is presented by actors and actresses of the upper high school and college age level. The second disc is a digital workbook.

Some of the topics covered:
Separation of Powers
Federalism and Theories of Democratic Government
Processes by which Citizens Learn about Politics
Political Parties and Elections:Functions, Organization, and Development
Interest Groups & Political Action Committees
Congress, Presidency, and Bureaucracy
The Institutions of National Government
Policy Making
Civil Rights & Civil Liberties
Fourteenth Amendment
....And Much More

The sale price for U.S. gov & politics is $39.98. This is not a consumable product so it can be used with each of your children. You can purchase the set and view many others by clicking here.

Beeyoutiful Review

2010-05-12T09:03:00.002-05:00

This gentle, moisturizing and natural lotion is safe for the most sensitive
of babies. Gently massage Beeyoutiful's Baby Body Lotion into baby's skin after a bath or anytime during the day as needed. The Lavender and Chamomile are particularly helpful in bringing calmness and serenity to weary babies and mothers alike, encouraging relaxation and sleep.

$13.00 for 6oz at www.Beeyoutiful.com

I have a 21 month old baby boy that I have been using Baby Body Lotion on after his bath. It is very nourishing. His skin is extra soft. He has had rough spots on the backs of his upper arms and those spots are gone. The Lavender and Chamomile scents are very strong. At first I didn't like the smell at all, but I have grown accustom to it the more I have used the product.

The Beeyoutiful company is a natural health and nutritional company with supplements and skin care products. They have a wonderful catalog/magazine that they produce. The publication list all of their products but it also has other helpful articles. The winter issue included an article on sprouting grains at home, bread baking and exercising to be pain free. I really enjoyed reading the catalog.

All In A Day's Work

2010-05-11T10:53:00.002-05:00

I recently saw a post on www.raisingolives.com that was very interesting to me. There is a section to the website entitled 4 Moms/35 kids. These 4 moms share what life with a big families is like. One day they posted what there day had looked like. It was a live blog update that went on throughout the day. It was very interesting to read. I decided today that I'm going to leave my computer close at hand all day and as the day progresses I'm going to post what we've been doing. Even if no one else finds it interesting I think I will benefit from reading over the days activities when the day is coming to a close. I ahve to back track a bit because it's almost noon and I'm just starting. :)

6:00am-Got up with Croix and made his lunch. Did my Beth Moore bible study-The Psalms of Ascent. It came a hard, hard downpour during this time. Prayed for Croix's driving safety on the way to work.

7:15-Lilli comes and lays down in my bed. I read a bit more from a book called Taking Care of the Me in Mommy by Lisa Welchel. Snuggle and doze with Lilli.

7:45-Lane comes in to snuggle. I hear Lijah calling for me from his bed when Lane arrives. I take 5 minutes to snuggle with Lane then ask Lilli to go get Lijah. Lane decided to get up and prepare breakfast in bed.

8:00-Poptarts are served on a Lightening McQueen snack tray. Daddy doesn't approve of crumbs in the bed. Good thing I had planned on washing the sheets today.

8:15-9:00- Older kids shower. Get laundry going. Put fresh sheets on my bed and make it. Lane and I change his tadpoles water. We can see legs! We have read aloud time from Terrestria Chronicles-The Dragon's Egg.

9:15-9:45 Tyson arrives for piano lessons. Lilli has her lesson. I build a fort for Lane. I take a bath with Lijah and get him and myself ready for the day. Continuing to keep laundry going.

10:00-11:00 More reading from The Dragon's Egg. Everyone has an apple for a snack while we are reading.

11:00-11:45-Help Lilli recite scripture memory verses for AWANAS for tomorrow night. More reading aloud to Lijah and Lane. Change Lijah's dirty diaper. Clear off the bar. Checkbook debit entries. Use Liquid Plummer for the laundry sink. It's clogged. Make lunch.

11:45-noon-Eat lunch (turkey, cheese, lettuce whole wheat tortilla wraps, corn chips, water).

Noon-Lilli and Lane decide to go outside to play. I think it's going to be cold because it looks dreary and is really windy. Actually it's humid. They are outside now. Lijah is on the bar. Found a box of raisins from out Dr. appointment outing yesterday and he's eating them. Going to hand out with him a bit while the other kids are out.

12:11-12:17 Lijah spent 6 minutes on Blankie Time playing by himself! I'm working at teaching him controlled play in a specific area. Have heard of this from multiple sources, but finally decided to try it. Eventually I hope to get a half hour out of him. I set near his blankie and read my Mommy & Me book while he played. Lane just came and asked if he could let the baby chicks out to play with. Lijah is picking a book for me to read to him.

12:36 Reading with Lijah. Lilli comes in and asks to get her knife to sharpen a stick so that she can pretend it's a skimitar. I say yes. A few minutes later here comes Lane asking the same question. I ask him where his knife is and he tells me it's in the gun cabinet. I tell him I don't know where the key is. He says we can call dad and ask him. I told him to ask dad if he thinks its a good idea for him to sharpen a knife by himself. He has done it before with Croix's supervision. I'm in hopes the Croix will say he can't get his knife out, but he says it's ok as long as he sits on the front porch and does it and bring the knife back in when finished. Hmmmm. I don't like guns or knives, but my husband has a nice collection. So I get the key, open the cabinet, Lane's gets his knife and nows he's sharpening his skimitar. Going to move laundry and more reading with Lijah.

1:00-Put Lijah down for a nap. Lane watched a science video on volcanoes and then looked at books on the couch. I did Language Arts with Lilli and we finished her book for the year. Did math with her. We are working on the 6,7,8,9 times tables. She has memorized the others, but is a little frustrated with the memorization of the higher numbers. She is doing her individual math work now. Lane is outside playing. I'm going to work on more laundry.

2:30-Put Lane on his bed for some quiet time and to think about a bad choice. We talked through things and then I gave him a book to look at until 3:00, which is snack time. Lilli had a neighborhood friend call and ask her to come and play. She went to play. both the boys still sleeping. I finished Taking Care of the Me In Mommy. Now I'm going to go check out the author's website. Switch laundry.

3:24-Checking out www.LisaWelchel.com. Ate a banana and some animal cookies for a snack. Started brown rice in a pan for supper. Boys are still sleeping. Quiet in the house.

3:38-Time to get off the computer. Boys are still sleeping but Croix is on his way home. Going to get freshened up and do a quick sweep through of the house.

4:50-Croix came home to a quiet house. I was looking cute and the house wasn't too bad. :) The boys woke up shortly after he arrived. I started supper: baked salmon on brown rice, italian veggies, left over corn and leftover baked beans. Croix took the boys with him to pick up some farm gates at the Hardinburg General Store. I just typed a letter to the VBS teachers that share with them our vision for our end of the week family night. So blessed to be a part of Kingdom Work! Putting the salmon in to bake and then going to get Lil.

5:45-6:15 Dinner & family devotions

6:30 We ride to town with Croix. He has a meeting at church. I take the kids to the library and then they play on the church playground while I walk the parking lot for exercise. We go for ice cream afterwards.

9:15 Home later than expected because we met a widow when we went for ice cream. We asked her to join us. We stayed later than expected visiting with her.

9:30 PJ's on, baby in bed, heading to our evening read aloud spot. Just finishing the last book in the Chronicles of Narnia series.

10:00 Kids in bed, Croix in the shower. I layed out meat for tomorrows lunch. Finishing hear and going to my bed to read. Good night.

Amazing Monday!

2010-05-04T09:21:00.002-05:00

I love it when Monday's are super-de-duper! It sets the precedent for the whole week! Lilli & Lane stayed all night with their grandparents on Sunday night. Monday morning was a snuggle time with Lijah. It's nice to have time alone with him without the other children. I don't get that very often. He was quite the character. I was able to get my kitchen cleaned during the morning hours which was a huge a accomplishment on my part, especially for a Monday.

Croix sent me a text message asking if I wanted to meet him for lunch after the older children came home. Of course, I agreed! We enjoyed a Mexican fiesta at our favorite restaurant. Then the children and I walked all over town doing our errands. We visited a greenhouse and the library. We then went to Walmart and got a family movie for the evening. We also got fudgecicles. Yummy!

We went by my mom's preschool when she was finished with class, to see if she wanted an afternoon treat and she did. It was about the time Croix was getting off work so he came by too. The children had a chance to play and enjoy their treats. Croix had a few errands to do in town so the big kids went with him and Lijah and I headed home. Lijah took a long nap and I took a cat nap. I also was able to do all of the animal feeding before the rest of the crew returned. I forgot to mention that Croix said he would take care of supper too! What a glorious day for me. NO cooking!

They brought supper home and my Mother's Day gift! They went ahead and gave it to me and it was a new digital camera. I can't wait to get some time to learn how to use it. Hopefully will be able to do it this afternoon. Croix also brought home new baseballs and a glove for himself. After dinner we had a fun time teaching Lane the correct way to play. We practiced catching. Croix worked with Lilli and I pitched to Lane. Lijah just played in the yard. Then we did batting practice too. The children are naturally athletic so there wasn't much discouragment by learning how to play. We ended with a team huddle.

After baths, we watched a family movie and ate strawberry shortcake. It was a great day. I am so thankful for the freedom I have to spend the whole day with my children whenever I want to. I'm not sure how thankful Lilli is right now since she's locked herself in her room to do schoolwork that she didn't do yesterday. :)

How blessed we are!

Sue Gregg changed the way my family eats.

2010-04-26T18:50:00.002-05:00

Sue Gregg is a whole foods and whole grain cooking expert. She's created numerous cookbooks. The cookbooks all take healthy ingredients and teach you how to turn them into tasteful and simple recipes. I was introduced to Sue Gregg and her philosophy about cooking through the book, Introducing Whole Foods Cooking for Health and Hospitality by Rich & Sue Gregg.

I had been burdened for quite some time about the processed foods I was continually feeding my family. I didn't really know how to make the switch to a healthier eating lifestyle. The cookbook mentioned above was the perfect introduction and it contained so much more than recipes. Here are a few of the items listed in the table of contents:
The Truth Test About Food
A Creator-Redeemer Based World View
Identifying Quality Foods & Ingredients
A Food Pyramid
whole Grains & Breads
Legumes-Dry Beans & Peas
Nuts & Seeds
Vegetables
Fruits
Vegetable Oils
Butter is Better!
Animal Foods-Dairy, Eggs, Meat, Fish, Poultry
Sugars & Sweets
Food In the Bible

As you can see a lot is packed into the 133 page book. Plus, you receive a DVD with cooking demonstrations for many of the recipes in the cookbook.

My family is now used to eating legumes instead of meat. Yet, we still eat meat just not at every meal. I had never prepared salmon before the review of this product and I'm finding it's one of our favorite main course dishes now. Keep in mind I have a husband, 9 year old, 5 year old and 20 month old. The Veggie Stir Fry is another favorite as well as Baked Potato Gourmet. I am so thankful to have been part of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Review Crew. I received a copy of the cookbook as a gift for review purposes only. Since talking to my friends about the Sue Gregg way I have learned that many of them own ALL of her cookbooks! I look forward to building my own collection!

You can learn more about Sue Gregg and her story, get free recipes, see pictures of prepared food and purchase cookbooks all at www.SueGreeCookbooks.com

Lesson Planet Review

2010-04-24T12:33:00.004-05:00

www.lessonplanet.com

Lesson Planet is the ultimate in online lesson planning. This website has over 150,000 lesson plans and 75,000 worksheets. The topics cover:
Art & Music
Health & Nutrition
Geography
Social Studies
Language Arts
Math
Science & Technology

Plus, there are teacher resources & research resources.

One thing I found interesting is that there is a search engine and you can search specific lesson plans. I searched Christian lesson plans and found 1,144 lesson plans that fall into this category. I also searched the word horses and found over 2,000 pre-made plans and over 400 worksheets that pertain to horses. My kindergartner is all about dinosaurs right now so I searched dinosaurs and found so many plans. You can choose what age you are looking for on this each topic. This is perfect for the homeschooling family that has all ages of children. You can study on the same subject but with age appropriate lessons and activities. There are also theme sections you can choose.

Another added benefit that I found was the standards section. You find your state on a list of the 50 states and then listed are the state standards for all grades. This helps guide you lesson planning.

This website is brilliant! I want to use it as a supplement to our studies for next school year. If I didn't already have a curriculum that I used and was satisfied with I would consider using this for my complete school package for both of my children. If I was a new homeschooler on a limited budget and who needed specific plans I would choose Lesson Planet! It is very affordable at only $39.95 per year. This is a fee you pay if you decide to keep the service after a 10 day free trial. Click here to sign up for your free trial.

Super Star Speech Review

2010-04-24T10:44:00.002-05:00

My daughter, Lilli, is 9 years old. When she was 7 1/2-8 I was a little concerned about her speech. She made the "r" sound incorrectly. She started it when she was a toddler and I thought it was something she would grow out of before kindergartner so I wasn't concerned, but as the years progressed she wasn't growing out of it. My older sisters thought it was cute and they would change the way the talked when they were imitating her so that they would sound like her, but I was beginning to think it was going to be a permanent problem. I have a friend who is a speech therapist in the public school and she told me they didn't even begin correcting that kind of a problem in the public school until the end of 2nd grade. We came to the end of the 2nd grade and she still hadn't corrected her speech on her own. I have another friend from church who is a speech therapist and I asked her if she would meet with us. She did and listened to Lilli talk. She immediately recognized the fact that when Lil was saying a word that started with the "r" sound she would say the "w" sound instead, but if the "r" sound were in the middle of the word than she would pronounce it correctly. She agreed to get some exercises together for me to work on at home with my daughter. As it happened, Lilli began to correct herself when she realized the problem. I think when she heard the speech therapist point it out it made her aware that she was saying it differently. We never needed the exercises. I tell you all of this because when I was reviewing the product Super Star Speech I realized that if I had known of the program a couple of years ago it might have been something I could have put to use right away. I was selected to review Super Star Speech this product in connection with The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew.

Super Star Speech is a program that has been designed by speech-language pathologists to assist parents in helping their children to achieve developmentally appropriate speech and to provide some of the necessary resources to do speech therapy at home. The focus of the books is to correct articulation problems. This was exactly the area in which my daughter was struggling.

Super Star Speech helps you determine whether your child's speech skills are normal for his or her age and will help you to teach sounds, in an organized, and yet fun way. It's designed for children ages 3 and up. It's ideal for the homeschool setting.

The book Super Star Speech: Speech Therapy Made Simple includes a manual with an articulation test. This test helps you identify the distinct areas where you child may need improvement. It also includes worksheets, game and 240 picture cards printed on colored card stock. It's 90 pages. It comes in 2 forms. Ring bound with a cost of $22.95 or Spiral bound at $18.95.

Super Star R & L will help you correctly teach your child to say the L & R sounds. It contains 168 picture cards. You also get games, worksheets, activities and reproducible lesson forms. The games and activities are different from the ones in Super Star Speech: Speech Therapy made Simple. Super Star R & L is spiral bound and 83 pages. Cost is $18.95.

The same type of book exists called Super Star S, Z and Sh. It includes things similar to the above listed and costs the same.

Super Star Ch, J, & Th is available as a downloadable e-book and it's $12.95.

If you feel like your child or children would benefit from the complete Super Star Speech Package which includes everything listed above except the downloadable Ch, J & Th version. You may purchase a complete set for $58.65.

The Super Star Speech website also has free articles to read and resources to use. You can see those by clicking here.

I personally think this would be a great alternative to traditional speech therapy for a couple of reasons. No scheduling away from home. You can do it on your time frame at home with one child or all of your children present. Financially it is more affordable than speech therapy especially if you were paying for the therapy entirely out of pocket. If you are looking for a resource to try before going to a speech therapist than Super Star Speech could be just right for you!

Time 4 Learning Review

2010-04-22T14:43:00.003-05:00

Time 4 Learning is a really neat educational website that I was asked to review through the Old Schoolhouse Magazine Review Crew. I have reviewed lots of sites this year and I believe this may have been the easiest one for my 5 son to navigate. Time 4 Learning is an Internet based education activity site. Some families might be able to use this site as there choice for a complete curriculum. It's geared for preschool-8th grade. There are 2 sections to the site, lower level and upper level. I would highly suggest viewing the scope and sequence so that you could see all of the activities offered at each level. You can also view a subject overview for each level by clicking here and then looking to the right.

For Lane, I could use Time 4 Learning as his language arts program for kindergarten. It has phonics, vocab, grammar and verbal and reading comprehension. The site offers a scope and sequence section and it allow the parent to choose extra activities if you wanted more activities in the specific language arts area. When you purchase the monthly subscription to Time 4 Learning you also receive math. I like the math that I currently use for my 3rd grader and will use for kindergartner but I could see using the drills as supplement to my regular curriculum.

Lane enjoyed matching and phonics games when he was trying out the program. The activities are very colorful and easy to understand. He also liked an art program where he could paint the scene in front of him.

If I was using Time 4 Learning with multiple children I would take advantage of the Parent Progress Report. It is a report that is automatically generated that gives you the details of your child's progress on each specific subject they are working on. The activities that the students do are graded by the program and I can print the report if I want a hard copy. Printable worksheet pages are also available to subscribers.

There are science and history portions to the program too. I can look over each lesson in advance and decide if I want to do the experiments that offered or I can see what will be studied in social studies and decide in advance if i want to get some extra read alouds to go with the lessons.

With summer right around the corner I could see how Time 4 Learning would be a fun way to keep kid's minds in the learning mode but keep things really fun for the summer. My children would enjoy some extra computer time a couple times a week. This would also keep them busy working on something constructive. I know that I've found after a few weeks of summer break my children are looking for things to do.

There is a parent forum offered through the site that allows you to connect with other families who are using the program. It's a place for idea sharing and encouragement.

The cost for the program is $19.95 for month for the 1st child and $14.95 per month for each additional child. This is includes access to the complete language arts and math program. I know Time 4 Learning offers science and social studies as well but I could not determine if there was an additional fee for these add ons. There is a 14 day money back guarantee.

Traded my garden spot for a round pen

2010-04-20T16:33:00.003-05:00

I've traded the spot that I used last year for a garden for a horse training round pen. I'm very excited about the round pen! I will still have fresh produce to eat and freeze but I'm going to buy it from the amish. I got to thinking about having a baby during the gardening season and decided I would be fine without it this year. So instead we put up a round pen for the kids to ride in and Croix to train a 3 year old horse that we have. We spent Sunday and Monday evening outside near the barn and the horses. The kids wrode and Croix worked with the young horse.

I guess you can say we've gone back to our roots. When Croix and I first started dating we were boot wearing, horseback riding country kids. Over the years we left that behind. We were even totally without horses for a few years. Now that we are back to that life I realize how much I have missed it. Of course, I myself am not riding right now since I'm expecting, but I will look forward to climbing in the saddle again. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I get to watch Lilli's 4-H horse shows in July. Ledger is scheduled to make the scene around July 11 and her first show is July 17. We turned her forms in today because she said if she gets a first she wants to go to the state fair.

On another note, I'm starting to see the light at the end of our homeschooling year. Lane only has 2 more letters left to complete my goal for him for the year. He is doing great with phonics and is spelling phonetically just for fun. He's also adding and subtracting which he taught himself to do. I have reinforced his natural learning with natural lessons like here are 5 grapes, eat 1 now how many do you have.? Here are 3 M & M's, let me give you 5 more now how many do you have?

Lillis only has 19 lessons left in her math book. That's been my requirement for the completion of the end of the year....getting the math book done! It looks like we will be finishing up around the 10th of May. Last year we headed to Florida for vacation the day after we finished school. Oh how I wish we were doing that this year, but no big vacation for us until after baby Ledger arrives so I will just have to sit tight and take a sniff of my yummy subtle tanning lotion when I'm wishing for the ocean. :)

Great Family Weekend!

2010-04-18T19:50:00.004-05:00

Our weekend started off with a cook-out with another homeschooling family. Our kids love being together and the adults do too! We had burgers, pork chops and hot dogs and smores! The food was good and the fellowship was refreshing.

Saturday we decided to head to Patoka Lake. The nature center was having a spring kick-off event. We visited the nature center, which we had never done. Viewed a red-tailed hawk. We have one living in one of the trees in our back woods so we see it fairly often so seeing it in captivity wasn't so special. :) We picnicked. Won prizes. Took a really cool hike. Received free tress and plants as gifts for coming. It was a nice family day together! That evening Croix went and did some surveying while I took the children to a cousin's birthday party in New Albany.

Sunday we attended church. A team that is going on a mission trip did a fundraiser after church. You could take spaghetti dinners home for lunch for a donation to the mission team. It was a great meal that I didn't have to prepare. Croix and I had a nap afterwards. Then everyone went outside. I scoped out where I want to put a flower bed and then I helped the children ride there horse in our new round pen. Croix worked with our 3 year old, unbroke horse. We did the farm feeding and left for small group. We had a wonderful small group bible study. The fellowship and time in the word that we experience with this group is very sweet.

Now we are home settling for the night. I'm thinking about what the week will hold. Croix has started a fire since it's going to get a bit chilly tonight. The baby is already sleeping and the older 2 are getting into their p.j.'s. When I'm finished with this we will do devotions and call it a wrap on a great weekend for the Hodges.

PS-not sure if I shared this last week, but Croix got a new car. We were extremely blessed to get what we did. We paid cash! No payment. To God be the glory!

What Am I?

2010-04-13T00:26:00.002-05:00

All About Reading-What Am I?

a collection of short stories

If you have followed my reviews this year you may remember All About Spelling and the Beehive Reader. This review is from the same company and it's their newest product, entitled What Am I?

A hard back book with a built in name plate inside the front cover. Ten delightful short stories with silliness and facts of every kind. Fabulous black and white sketched pictures. Each chapter contains anywhere from 6-12 pages. A nice small chapter book for beginning readers.

You can check it out or get one for yourself at www.all-about-reading.com for $19.95.

To read more reviews go to The Schoolhouse Crew.

Terrestria Chronicles Review

2010-04-12T23:28:00.004-05:00

www.talesofcastles.com

If you are looking for a book for your young reader to read on his own to learn about what it means to be fully surrendered to Jesus Christ than I would suggest the Terrestria Chronicles Series. If you enjoy reading fiction aloud to your children that contains life lessons and character building than once again I would suggest Terrestria Chronicles. Finally, if you have a young man or young woman in your life who is interested in castles, knights, and the middle ages then Ed Dunlop's Terrestria Chronicles wins out again. I will note that there is no magic or wizardry in these books. I had the privilege of reviewing The Crown of Kuros and the Dragon's Egg in this phenomenal series as a reviewer for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Review Crew. You may read other reviews by clicking here.

The first book I read aloud was entitled the Crown of Kuros. The book is centered around King Emmanuel, who symbolizes Christ. As the plot unfolds, you meet a young man with the title of Prince Josiah. The reader learns that Prince Josiah is adopted into King Emmanuel's family. Something has been stolen from the castle that bares huge significance to King Emmanuel's reign. The bulk of the book is about Prince Josiah's personal journey to surrendering his heart to King Emmanuel as he looks for the stolen object. My children were begging me to read more as we would end our afternoon reading each day. I think one day we read 4 chapters at one setting. I loved the story myself. It was very tempting not to read ahead when the children weren't watching because the plot was so engaging. I never mentioned to the children that the King symbolized our King Jesus. We were about 3/4 of the way through the Crown of Kuros when my daughter excitedly proclaimed, "I get it! King Emmanuel is God and Prince Josiah is like we are when we have to decide to surrender our hearts to Him."

The 2nd book for review of the Terrestria Chronicles was entitled The Dragon's Egg. This book plays just a bit on the Crown of Kuros but could very easily stand alone if you had no background information from the previous book. Prince Josiah and 2 of his friends discover a dragon's egg. In the kingdom, King Emmanuel forbids his followers from owning dragon's eggs. Prince Josiah knows it is forbidden but he decides to keep an egg hidden in his room in the castle. The former egg's owners convinced him the egg was too old to have anything living inside of it so there shouldn't be any harm in keeping it for himself. After having the egg in his room for a couple of weeks, Josiah returns one day to find the egg cracked open and whatever was inside gone. I am suspecting that means there is a dragon loose in the kingdom. I have to admit that I haven't quite finished this book, but I can hardly wait to do so. My son, just this evening while driving in the car, was listening to a book on CD. One of the characters in the book was being disobedient and unkind. My 5 year old said, "His heart is unyielded." This was a very precious statement to me because at our house when we have disobedience we recognize that not only as disobedience to parents but disobedience to God too. The Dragon's Egg uses the words "unyielded heart" quite often and I suppose my little guy picked up on the meaning from the book.

I am going to purchase the entire series of books. There are 7 books in the series. Each one alone retails for $7.99, but the set is only $39.99. I have been impressed with the quality in writing and the way the story lines have so paralleled what a life committed to Christ is supposed to look like. I have appreciated the way temptations and struggles were presented, just as they are in the daily walk of a believer. I have also been satisfied with the way the author portrays Christ as the forgiving Father that He is.

A few other things offered on the website www.talesofcastles.com where the series can be purchased are free downloadable coloring pages, free e-books, and a study guide for the books that can be used in the classroom or for family devotions.

One last thought about these books are that I will use them as supplemental reading with my history curriculum for next school year. We will studying the middle ages which is full of castles, knights, and medieval battles. This series will fit in nicely with that period of study.

Problem Solved!

2010-04-12T20:00:00.002-05:00

So if you read my post from last week you know I was totally up in the air about what to do with the vehicles. Here's how things have played out.

A junk vehicle person paid $500 for our car and our van. We out that towards the cash that we had and finally today bought a Toyota Camry for Croix to drive. As of now I'm going to stick with the Durango as we can all fit in it, including baby when he arrives. Croix needed something dependable and efficient to drive back and forth to work in. We were blessed to find a great, low mileage Camry within our price range. We have decided to go ahead and sale the camper, since in reality we aren't going to be using it much this summer with the baby arriving and also next summer with a toddler and a 1 year old. We are going to take the money we make on it and put it towards a farm truck for Croix to use as a surveying vehicle for tax purposes.

Aaah! It feels so nice to have a car in the driveway without a payment. This is the first time we have purchased a new car with cash. We are blessed!

Just thinking out loud

2010-04-08T08:19:00.007-05:00

Sometimes I have a lot on my mind and it helps to write so today I decided I would blog about what's on my mind. To whomever may read this sorry if it sounds like rambling. So we are trying what to decide to do about our vehicle situation. First off it needs to be known that we haven't incurred any new debt for the past 3 years. We have been very committed to know new debt and paying down current debt. Croix wants to be at a place where he can retire around 50 and so it is imperative that no new debt is incurred.

With all that said our vehicles are all paid for. We have a 2000 Dodge Durango with 200,000 miles. Still pretty dependable. It's our main vehicle. We also have a Dodge Caravan that was my primary vehicle, but almost 3 years ago (when we decided not to get any new debt) the transmission went out of the van. We've kept it with the intentions of getting a new transmission. The cost of transmission and labor will be on $1400-$2000. The van does have 140,000 miles on it, so it is a little risky to put this kind of money into a van with that high of miles. We had put about $1000 into the a/c of the van before the transmission went out so it's hard to think of ditching the van, but we just aren't feeling real secure about investing such a large amount of money into something that we aren't sure will last another few years. Finally, Croix's primary vehicle has been a little Toyota Corolla with 300,000 miles. He just drives it back and forth to work because of the great gas mileage. Two weeks ago the front wheel in the car started acting funny and now it's about to fall off. The car now needs some major repairs that pertain to the wheel and the repairs are going to cost more than the car is worth. We aren't going to invest anymore money into this car either.

So pretty much what we have is a high mileage SUV that can hold all of us and 2 vehicles that can't be driven. With a new baby on the way that locks us into having some type of vehicle that can comfortably seat 6 people.

I have been home with nothing to drive as Croix has used the truck to get back and forth to work. That's not been a problem. The weather has been nice so we've been outside a lot. I really haven't minded being stuck at home, but I know as summer gets here and we want to go swimming and do warm weather activities I am going to want something of my own.

As we consider all of this we have to remember that we have an old heavy camper that we love to camp in. We have used our Durango to pull the camper. We only go places pretty close to home so it's not been a problem to use the Durango to pull it. Now that the durango is our only vehicle and it has 200,000 miles Croix doesn't want to haul the camper for fear that it might be too much for the transmission. Another thing to think about is that we heat with wood and haul our own wood. We don't have a truck to haul the wood in. We have always borrowed from our parents. They haven't minded but we would like to have out own truck for wood, hay, animal feed and farm supplies.

So......can you see how confusing how all of this can be. If we were willing to borrow money we would buy a crew cab 4-wheel drive truck and a van and a little compact car for Croix to drive back and forth to work. We would have our new vehicle payments and insurance and gas for those vehicles. Although that is what we want it is not possible on a one income budget and it would not be what God wants for us. We have been in a desperate position of being a "servant to the lender" and we aren't going back there.

So here are some of the solutions:
Option 1-Fix the van-spending $1400-$2000 in hopes that the new transmission and current motor will take us to 200,000 miles. Croix drives the van back and forth to work. Keep the Durango 4 a 4-wheel drive for the winter and I still have it as my primary vehicle. Buy an old beater farm truck. Sell the camper since we won't have anything to pull it with, unless the farm truck is big enough to pull the camper. Make $800 on the camper sell. Sell the Toyota to those people who buy used cars that won't run. Possibly get $100 for it. Use the $900 towards the farm truck.
Spend $1400 van
Spend $1000 truck
Total-$2400
Make $100 Toyota
Make$800 camper
Total-$900
Total spent to meet our needs$1500

Option 2-Sell the van and the Toyota to those people who buy used junk cars and haul them away. Possibly getting $300-$400. Sell the camper and make $800. Possibly making $1000-$1200. Put this towards another small car for Croix to drive. Buy a farm truck. My primary vehicle still the Durango.
Spend $2000 Croix's small car
Spend $800 Farm truck
Total-$2800
Make $300 on junk vehicles
Make $800 on camper
Total-$1100
Total spent to meet our needs$1700

Option 3-Sell the junk vehicles and the camper making $1000-$1200. Sell the Durango for $1000. Having $2000-$2000 to put towards a truck that can hold all of us, haul wood, hay and etc and is 4-wheel drive. This would be my primary vehicle. Buy Croix a small car to drive back and forth to work. This is the most expensive option, but I think it's the one that would serve us the best. I like having a van and I don't think there will be enough room in a truck, even with 4 doors for me and the kids when we are doing groceries and etc. I think we could do this without incurring debt. We have a tax return and Croix's surveying income that could allow us to purchase a truck outright.
Spend $2000 Croix's small car
Spend $10,000 for a truck
Total-$12,000
Make $300 on junk vehicles
Make $800 on camper
Make-$1000 on selling the Durango
Total-$2100
Total spent to meet our needs-$9900

Option 3 is the one Croix is leaning towards. I know that I need to pray about this because I want to be a good steward and I want to be submissive and obedient to my husband's wishes. He knows I really want a van so he's willing to forfeit the truck idea so that I can get a new van. I think maybe I'm just being selfish. Since when did vehicles start being so important? They need to take us from point A to point B. It doesn't have to be a luxury ride. I know I just don't like to hear the children arguing in the car and my reservation about the truck is that the kids will be setting so close that they will be bickering with each other. So I'm really concerned about my own comfort and not having to listen to them fight with each other. I know that God supplies the patience that I need in the trying times. Maybe he would even reform my children from arguing in the car. I also think about family vacations. I love a road trip to the beach. It has been our best family memories so far. I know we could do it in a truck, but where do we put all of the stuff. It could also be that we just don't need any big road trips for the next year or two. With a 2 year old and a new born maybe vacations need to be close to home. That's another blog in itself.

So as I look back I like options 1 & 2. We could do option 3 with no debt but it will take all of our tax return and all Croix's surveying money from the last 2 jobs. We have a long list of things we need/want to do with that money. Goodness, I need to pray over all of this and listen for the Lord's guidance. More than anything we don't want to be foolish or disobedient with the blessings the Lord has bestowed upon us.

The Simple Woman's Day Book

2010-04-05T16:31:00.002-05:00

For Today....

Outside my window....it's not sunny but it's not cloudy. We had a light downpour about 30 minutes ago. There's a breeze blowing through my lace curtains.

I am thinking.....that is really nice for Croix to take the children and the dogs down over the hill behind our house for a time of nature romping. I like quiet before dinner.

From the learning room...we are focused on completing Lilli's math curriculum for the year and lots of nature study. We have been observing tadpoles for weeks for a science fair project. We released them last week in our neighbors pond. The kids decided to catch grown frogs. This is mating season so now our aquarium is full of tadpole eggs. Very exciting since we have learned so much about this process over the last month to 6 weeks. Lane has 4 more letters to complete for his preschool work to be finished for the year.

I am thankful for.... the warm weather and an amazing husband who knows me better than anyone else.

From the kitchen....spaghetti is simmering.

I am wearing...blue jean shorts, red tshirt and tennis shoes.

I am hoping...that we can make family devotions work right after supper. They haven't been going so well before bedtime. Mostly because I'm really tired and the kids are picking on each other. Tonight we are going to try it after the dinner table is cleared off.

I am creating....thoughts in my mind about what it may or may not be like around here when baby Ledger arrives. I really need to stop thinking about this, it's making me a little crazy.

I am hearing....the air outside moving and birds singing.

Around the house.....load of laundry in the washer that needs transferred to the dryer. Cleaned over the weekend so it's still in pretty good shape. My porch is a mess and hope to get it swept off and straightened this week.

One of my favorite things.....blogging when it's quiet in the house and I can really think and relax.

A few plans for the rest of the week....deliver some Mary Kay, hope to take mom to lunch for her birthday, church on Wednesday night, play with friends one day.

Whew....reviews, reviews, reviews

2010-03-30T10:29:00.002-05:00

Sorry to my blog readers who like to catch up on my life via this blog. I have been writing lots of reviews. I have really enjoyed it and loved all of the free homeschooling products, but I must say I will be glad when May closes out and my time with The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Review Crew comes to an end. When I spend time on the computer doing reviews I don't want to blog about life in general.

Today is a gorgeous day in southern Indiana. My children have all been outside for a good while. The older 2 have found 8 eggs so far today. I think the chickens know we are going to be coloring eggs for Easter and they are making a few more.. :) The baby loves the outdoors. Luckily, our backyard is perfect for little ones so he is doing a lot of time discovering.

We are a one car family right now, which will be interesting over the next couple of weeks. This is just the 2nd day so I'm not feeling stranded. I praying the God gives me patience while I wait on him to provide our next vehicle. We have a plan, but are just patiently waiting on the Lord's timing. Luckily, spring is here so the children and I won't be in the house together all of the time. We have friends coming to visit tomorrow and we have Easter egg dyeing on our agenda for Thursday so I don't mind being home. I think we may walk to the park at the country church down the road. We will wait until after nap time so everyone is fresh and ready for a good walk. Church is tomorrow evening and they provide dinner so I'm really looking forward to that...not cooking supper and seeing my students!

So that's all I have to share today. I have written and published 3 or 4 reviews today so I'm a little typed out and ready to get away from the computer. Until we meet again, enjoy your day!

Critical Thinking-Balance Benders

2010-03-30T09:53:00.004-05:00

www.criticalthinking.com

I had to have a little help on this review. My children are 5 & 9 so critical thinking and algebra aren't something we have had much experience with yet. I wasn't sure I could do the review justice so I asked my girlfriend, Larissa Brock, for some help. You can check out her blog at www.homeschoolblogger.com/simplify. She has 4 children who are at the pre-algebra level or above. I knew she could evaluate the product and her children could try it out too. So here are her thoughts on Balance Benders, a beginning level workbook from the Critical Thinking Company.

"The book says it's for 2nd through 6th graders but it seemed a bit above that level at first. If you have a child who is advanced in math in that age category they would probably have no trouble working through the problems. The workbook is a page by page puzzle format. The puzzles gets harder as the student progresses through the book. On each page there is a "balance" shown with shapes. Below the scale is 6 possibilities and 3 of those being correct. The student uses his reckoning skills. Not using numbers makes it more difficult to solve because you can't put numbers in to get an answer.

The back of the book has a "Balance Tips" page. At first glance it seems a bit confusing, but after completing the first puzzle and then going through the tips again they made a lot more sense. The puzzles provide a very good interpretation of Algebra and the puzzles are a fun way to practice deductive thinking skills."

One of the benefits of the product is that the Critical Thinking Company gives permission to make copies of the workbook pages so you can use one book with multiple students. The book comes in 4 levels. They company offers much more than critical thinking workbooks. You should check out the website to see all they have. I was surprised to find complete core curriculums. The company website is packed full of useful articles and information and printable worksheets.

The price for Balance Benders is only $9.99. To purchase click here. I was given a copy of the workbook for review purposes only through my affiliation with the Old Schoolhouse Magazine Review Crew. To read more reviews click here.

Family Mint

2010-03-30T06:49:00.003-05:00

I am a former sales director with a cosmetic company. I was considered self employed. When it came to managing the money that I made from sales and commission I used a software program designed for the direct sales cosmetic industry. There were many times that I thought this would be a great program to use with my children to teach them how to manage money. I was thrilled to be introduced to FamilyMint. It is exactly what I was looking for. I was paying a monthly fee to use my service but FamilyMint is a free service, which makes it even better!

FamilyMint helps children save, manage and set financial goals. Parents can allocate allowances, automate savings, and reward deposits for worthwhile goals. The program is set up similar to the envelope system that so many are familiar with.

It was created by 2 dads who wanted to help there own children learn the concepts of money management. IT IS FREE! One of the extras of FamilyMint is the monthly e-newsletter. There are interesting articles that pertain to money and teaching tips to use with the children.

One of the things I was very impressed with was the response time when I emailed FamilyMint a question. The customer service was fabulous! I was made familiar with FamilyMint because of my affiliation with The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew to read more reviews click here.

Math Galaxy

2010-03-30T05:59:00.005-05:00

Galaxy in Education is a math software tutorial program for grades K-12.

Math Galaxy connects the abstract concepts of math to concrete experiences. It offers unlimited practice and detailed explanations.

My favorite part of Math Galaxy is the printable riddles and worksheets. The riddles are a new feature that many of the other software companies and online math programs do not offer. Riddles seem less like math and more like fun! There are games offered too. You print the games off and play them with your children or children play together. Some of the games are:

Word Problem Fun

Bridge the Swamp

Math Riddler

Labyrinth

One of the great things about this software is that it comes complete for K-12. I was able to find activities for my Pre-K as well as my 3rd grader. It is a program that we will never outgrow. You can see many of the games for yourself at the Math Galaxy website.

The cost is $24.95. You can purchase by going to www.mathgalaxy.com. You are given a 30 day money back guarantee and FREE SHIPPING!

I was given access to the software because of my affiliation with The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Review Crew. To read more reviews click here.

CBH Ministries

2010-03-22T14:26:00.005-05:00

CBH Ministries, formerly known as Children's Bible Hour, is a media ministry targeting kids ages 6-12 years old with Bible-based materials. They produce radio programs, print materials, and web based media to teach kids the message of Jesus Christ. This is my review of CBH Ministries Seasons of Faith read along book and CD sets. I was given four free books and Cd's to review as part of the THe Old Schoolhouse Review Crew. All 4 books were from the Seasons of Faith Series. I really enjoyed this review because when I was a child my mom used Keys 4 Kids as our daily devotional and this is produced by CBH.

The Seasons of Faith illustrated books encourage children to learn about their faith in God. Based on former CBH Ministries' treasure trove of radio scripts, these stories teach core truths of the Bible so that kids can easily apply them to their lives. Each book focuses on a season of faith developing topics.

The Spring book focuses on new life in Christ and shares the salvation message. The Summer season focuses on growth and striving to be the best we can be in Christ. Autumn teaches about peer pressure, times of struggle and temptation, making mistakes and scary transitions.
Winter is the most difficult season and it deals with deep struggles, trying to make it through difficult times, transitions and the death of loved ones. God's comfort and peace is taught in the winter series.

The book & CD entitled Seventy Times Seven focuses on forgiveness.
You Can't Come In go over salvation and faith.
Race with Midnight is also a salvation and faith message.
Braving The Storm teaches how to rely on God during the transition of a move.

Each of these books may be purchased for $10 each. By clicking here you may also view the discussion guides to use with children by teachers and parents.

My children loved listening through these CD's and and following along in the books. My daughter especially enjoyed Race with Midnight because it is about a girl going to visit her cousin who lived on a ranch. My son liked You Can't Come In the best because 2 boys in the story were building a fort. I thought these books would be great for long car rides. The narrator's voice is "Uncle Charlie" from the radio series, and he is very pleasant to listen to. I also felt these would make great gifts for children that aren't exposed to the word of God or the salvation message.

If you would like to learn more about CBH Ministries and the other products and services that they have to offer visit their website at www.cbhministries.org.

A quick post

2010-03-18T15:38:00.002-05:00

This day has been glorious! The weather in southern Indiana is irresistible. I couldn't keep the children in today and I didn't want to stay in either. We had a picnic on the table outback for lunch. Then the children played and I picked up sticks and put them in our fire pit. I'm hoping for s'mores this weekend! A couple of the neighbor boys came to play and I made chocolate chip cookies. I also made lasagna for our dinner with friends tonight. The children and Croix are outside feeding animals right now. I'm feeling so blessed to have a nice little spot in the country in which I can enjoy nature, keep chickens and let my kids run free!

What a week!

2010-03-12T10:34:00.002-06:00

It's been a super week around here. We have enjoyed the warm spring days and spent lots of time outside. We went to see our tax preparer last night and that all turned out good! Croix and I both have home based businesses and sometimes we wonder what tax time is going to look like, but we have an amazing accountant and she always takes care of us.

Lijah is going through a stage. I'm not sure exactly what to call it, but my sweet easy, to get along with little toddler has become much more opinionated this week. He is exerting his own will now more than he ever has....he's only 20 months so he hasn't had a lot of time to exert himself before now. That's been an adjustment for me. Lane is eating me out of house and home. His thumb sucking hasn't slowed down at all. Our dentist said around 5 he will gradually taper off from the habit. I'm not seeing it yet. Lilli is.....well.....Lilli. Obedient in all things. A servant to her family and a lover of Christ. She has been diligently practicing all she's learning in piano. It's been fun hearing her progress. Our goats left us this week. I posted them on freecycle on Sunday evening and they were gone by Monday afternoon. I was just a bit sad to see them go, but I'm past it now that I'm not looking at goat poop out my back door.

Getting ready for a fun day at the co-op! One more thing....The Old Schoolhouse Store is having some fabulous deals for March Madness. It's called March Madness and Win Big. They have over 240 items anywhere from 10%-40% off! You can click here to read the details.
If your customer 139,000, 139,500 or 140,000 you will win over $348 in prizes. A 5 year subscription to TOS is one of the gifts. I love that magazine! It is my favorite homeschooling magazine. It's the only one I actually subscribe to.

So that's it for me in a nutshell. If you've followed the blog this week you've noticed I'ved been cranking out the reviews. I'm going to check out now for the weekend!

Homeschool Library Builder

2010-03-11T13:04:00.004-06:00

Homeschool Library Builder

Fill Your Bookshelves Without Emptying Your Wallet!

Homeschool Library Builder is an online book store and so much more.

Two homeschooling mothers who love great books have a company called Homeschool Library Builder. These two ladies have a love for great literature in the homeschool community and beyond. Here's what their company has to offer:
-Books!....of course. New, used, hard and soft cover and even out of print books. They stock titles used in Sonlight, Tapestry of Grace, 5 in a Row, Beautiful Feet and others.
-A book search is offered in which a book that is hard to find or out of print may be able to be tracked down and shipped to your door.
-Product Marketing-A venue for other new business owners to advertise the business or product they have to offer through the Homeschool Library Builder Website and a monthly newsletter. This is a free service for all members.
-Spotlight On The Season-the search is done for you for the perfect book for the upcoming holiday season to use as a read a-loud or give as a gift.
-Helping Hand-When you purchase books in the the Helping Hand category the proceeds go to the chosen charity. Currently the charity is the devastation in Haiti.
-Frequent Buyer Program-When you purchase frequently from Homeschool Library Builder you receive points than can accumulate to free books! You can also earn point by referring friends who purchase books.

All in all I think this is a great company to support. The selection of books they offer is as broad as many of the bigger online bookstores on the market. The prices are very affordable and even down right cheap on some selections. Shipping is offered free when you place an order of $150.00 or more. You can check out their selection of books by clicking here. While at the site make sure and site up to be a member so that you receive the free monthly newsletter that has specials and discounts. You sign up also gives you membership to the Frequent Buyers Program.

Homeschool In The Woods

2010-03-11T11:40:00.008-06:00

www.HomeschoolInTheWoods.com

I thoroughly enjoyed learning about Homeschool In the Woods and all they they have to offer me as a homeschooling mother. I had heard of this company but never viewed or tried any of their products. I had the privilege to receive a free download of one of their latest offerings as part of my participation in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine review crew. This is a review of the Maps Combo Pak-downloadable version offered for $28.95.

The Homeschool In The Woods company focuses on the education of history and geography through timelines, timeline figures, mapping and hands-on activity ideas. I found www.homeschoolinthewoods.com rich with information. A family that sticks with unit studies would see the Homeschool In The Woods website as a resource to never again be overlooked or passed over. They offer a monthly newsletter and when you sign up for the newsletter you receive a free bonus article.

My review is over the Olde World Style US Map and Olde World Style World Map downloads. As I was thinking about the review, I wondered how much I could learn or have to say about a map, but I was mighty surprised when I started digging into the material that I had received as a download.

OldeWorld Style US Map

This study comes with 3 maps for each state. A labeled map that includes bordering states, water ways and capitals. An unlabeled map that just contains physical features and the map outline. The 3rd map is just an outline of the state.

On top of the state map this set also contains maps of Native Americans, Colonial North America, the Mitchell Map, Slave & Free States during 1860, and Union and Confederate States. Maps of the growth of the US in 6 different stages are included as well as maps of the United States political borders and one with just physical features. Finally, a North American map with Canada and Mexico represented along with the US.

Maps aren't all that are included. State Face Sheets can be copied and filled out. Each sheet contains information about state symbols and space for writing additional facts or history. Flags are provided to print in color and to adhere to the notebook page. A cover and spine page can be printed and attached to a 3 ring notebook to keep all of the sheets and maps for a nice record of the studies completed.

Olde World Style World Map

There are 2 categories in the World Map. They are Ancient and Modern. They are similar to the US maps. They too come in labeled, unlabeled and outline form.

Ancient maps show the physical characteristics such as mountain ranges but no political boundaries. Modern maps show political boundaries as they would be seen today. Of course political boundaries in other countries change and so you could find a bit of discrepancy in these maps. Other maps included in this set are the 12 Tribes of Israel and Palestine at the time of Jesus Christ.

My favorite thing about The Old World Style World Map is the notebooking pages. These pages alone are worth $28.95. There are 40 pages to copy and use. There are some generic lined pages with no titles and there are pages with fill in the blank answers such as Flora & Fauna, Languages, Daily Life, Geography and many more. Some pages lend themselves to reports or essays such as Explorers of the World, Christmas, Missionaries and People of the Past. Included are also creative writing ideas for brochures, postcards and newspaper articles. A Country Fact Sheet is included. 7 Wonders of the Ancient World Even involves cutting and pasting. Recipe pages are included to record recipes tried that correlate with the place or the time of study.

As you can tell this is one powerful download. I am going to begin using this to compliment my Story Of the World volume 1 history study that we currently use. Then next year I will use it for geography study of the US. I am blessed to have received this gift to review. I believe that any homeschool classroom could highly benefit from the Maps Combo Pak from www.homeschoolinthewoods.com If you prefer another form of information you can see the other ways it may be purchased on their website by clicking here.

Highlights of the day!

2010-03-09T18:42:00.002-06:00

Yummy blueberry muffins for breakfast.

Great personal bible study on prophecy and what God intends for this gift in the New Testament church.

Caught up on the laundry......it's taken 2 wholes days to get caught up.....I mean the laundry closet was overflowing into the bathroom floor and it's a really big closet.

Lilli did nearly all of her school work on her own without being asked.

Was able to do some read aloud over lunch from a new book on reviewing from the Terrestria Chronicles Series.

I had a few minutes after lunch to kick up my feet and read a book while Lijah napped and the big kids played outside.

Picked up the rubbish in the backyard from the puppies. They chew on everything!

Some friends came over. Children had a delightful time playing and the mom's enjoyed some chit chat.

Beans, cornbread and fried potatoes for dinner. Umm Umm Good.

Family project of stacking wood and feeding the animals after dinner.

Lijah in bed early.

The children and I did a history read loud while they had cereal for an evening snack. The read aloud had a picture of the Mona Lisa which lead to our new Usborne Art Book that had a bigger print of the Mona Lisa. Then Lilli I looked at some of the other art work in the book.

Children in pj's and ready for devotions by 8:00.

I'm getting to blog and anticipate the children sleeping peacefully while I enjoy a warm bath and some tender time with my man.

What a great day!

Artistic Pursuits

2010-03-08T15:54:00.005-06:00

I've never been much on art, but I have a daughter who is a budding artist. She's had art lessons for the past 2 years with a fabulous teacher, but she often asks for other projects to do at home in her free time. She is in 3rd grade right now, and I believe I was blessed to review Artistic Pursuits, since it will be the perfect curriculum for her to lead herself through next school year. I received Artistic Pursuits for review purposes as a part of The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew.

Artistic Pursuits is a comprehensive art program designed to involve the student in creative process while developing observational skills. As I read through each unit of the curriculum I felt as if I could pick up the tools and learn to draw. I have never been confident in the arts but I believe that this curriculum could even teach me, a 31 year old mom, the joy of the creating. The book I'm reviewing is one of many of Artistic Pursuit's offerings. It is the grade 4-6 book entitled-The Elements of Art and Composition.

Each unit is broken down into lessons and there are 16 units in the book. The lessons are lay ed out very simply. First is building a visual vocabulary. Student are taught to look at a topic and focus on and explain it in word and pictures. Next, is American Art Appreciation and History. Students see how the same topic discussed in lesson 1 is used in master works and apply their new observations to a work of art that they create. Lesson 3 is techniques. Students learn how to use the materials and tools of art and apply that knowledge to make an original work of art. Application is the title of Lesson 4 and pupils do a final project for each unit incorporating new techniques and application of the topic while using a variety of references such as still life objects, landscapes, portraiture, photographs and more. On top of working through this curriculum and having many great pieces when finished there are 3 other objectives to the course:

1. Pupils learn to observe the world around them-to really see it.

2. Learn what to look for.

3. Learn to focus on one element of aft at a time, while drawing, and block out the others.

It is suggested that a unit be broken down into 2, 2 hours lessons once a week.

I found the table of contents very helpful. The 2 units are entitled:

The Elements of Art

Composition

I also found it very useful that art supplies are also listed in the table of contents for each unit. The supplies aren't extravagant. On the list are things like:

ebony pencils

vinyl eraser

sketch pad for drawing

scratch art-paper

white colored pencil

black construction paper

You can see these are things that are easy to pick up at most department stores or craft/hobby stores.

The cost of the complete curriculum is only $42.95. If you paid an instructor just $10.00 per lesson for each lesson in the book you would be looking at a cost of $160.00. Plus, time and gas going to and from the lessons. The lessons are designed to be student led so this is something that wouldn't take a lot of extra planning and preparation on top of the normal school lessons.

My favorite part of this review was the colored prints that were added to each unit. My family enjoys looking at different paintings and drawings from famous artists and artist who capture historical events. The prints in Artistic Pursuits are some of both. I highly recommend this product to the homeschool family who wants to add art appreciation and application to their classroom.

Beehive Reader 1

2010-02-25T10:53:00.006-06:00

(illustrations inside the reader)
Beehive Reader #1 from All About Reading.
(front cover of the book)

So what makes Beehive Reader so special? I actually asked myself that when I received it in the mail. As part of The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew, I received a free copy of the book for review purposes. As I learned more about this blue book, I realized a lot set it apart from most everyday readers. First of all I learned that the author's son had been diagnosed with dyslexia and was told he would never read fluently. Of course, like all homeschooling mom's who receive this news, it was not acceptable. So she started looking for readers to use with her son. What she found was she couldn't find readers that had a solid, incremental approach. Most "easy reader" books weren't decodable. They included a lot of sight words that many children aren't ready for yet. Or she found that the story lines didn't make sense and didn't hold the interest of her child.

This mother, Maria Rippel, along with Rene'e LaTulippe wrote Beehive Reader in 2009. They have received lots of good responses and even the Moonbeam Children's Book Award. You can learn more about Beehive Reader from other parent's who have had success with it at www.All-About-Reading.com . You may have read my review earlier in the year for a company called www.All-About-Spelling.com . These two companies are sisters. All About Spelling teaches a spelling approach unlike none other I have ever seen. The Beehive Reader #1 compliments the spelling program. You can use the reader with the spelling program or as a stand alone. You can click here to see free samples of the reader.

You probably noticed the illustrations from the pictures above. I love the black and white drawings in the book. My 5 year old studied each picture as I read him the story. Now I know the idea is for him to read, but he's not ready to read yet, so for review purposes I read to him and he listened.

You can purchase the Beehive Reader by clicking here. The cost is $19.95. It's a very high quality hard back copy and contains 10 different stories to read. This book looks like a chapter book and even has a name plate in the front. I think that if you have a child who needs to feel like a more accomplished reader but isn't quite ready for a real chapter book this could be just what he or she needs for a confidence builder.

To read more reviews you can go to The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew.

The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling

2010-02-25T08:39:00.004-06:00

As a homeschool mom I am periodically asked by someone who is considering homeschooling, "Exactly how do you start homeschooling?" I make recommendations of resources, tell them to browse the Internet, invite them over to see our school day and share some of my favorite books. After reviewing the latest product for The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew, I have something new to add to my bag of tricks. It's a book published by Apologia Press and written by Debra Bell. It's called the Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. I love how-to books on subjects that I am involved in and this one is a how -to guide to homeschooling that "takes the cake."

The book is 509 pages and I breezed through it in 24 hours. Not because the content wasn't great but because I was so excited to have received such a great book. I'm an experienced homeschooler so I thoroughly read the pages that applied to me right now and skimmed the pages that I felt like I had mastered or were too old for where my students were in our homeschooling journey.

Debra Bell is an experienced homeschoooling mother. All 4 of her children are homeschool graduates. She tells their stories in the book which was one of the most encouraging things to me. I get refueled when I hear of the impact and successes that other home educated grads are experiencing. Other topics covered in the book are:
Homeschooling: Is it for you?
Choosing a Curriculum
Organization and Planning
Preventing Burnout
What to Teach-When and How
Homeschooling Teens
Computers In the Homeschool
Creative Solutions
Measuring Your Success
Resource Guide of her favorite resources for organizations, publications, suppliers, products and academic and athletic contests.

Whew just typing that list makes me realize how full of info and insight the book is. I think it's a must have for all homeschoolers. It's perfect for the person considering it or just starting out. It's also ideal for someone like me who just needs some fresh ideas and encouragement. Finally to the person beginning the high school journey there is much information found in the book about what to teach and how to keep the records and also how to involve your students in the appropriate things to help them succeed in college.

The biggest thing that I gained from the book and have started implementing is what the author called "Sustained Silent Reading." She suggests that everyone in the house has a time during the day in which they read quietly, even mom. About 1:00 each day I lay my 20 month old down for a nap, and let my 5 and 9 year old choose books to look at or read. I set a kitchen timer and for 20 minutes everyone is quiet. It's a time I look forward to everyday. It's a way for for me have a moment to read whatever I want without feeling guilty for it and it's also a time in the day when my 2 oldest children can spend a few moments being quiet. It's working great for us!

I think the Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling would make a great gift for the person that is looking at home educating as an option for her family. It could also be something kept in a support group or co-op's library to share when you have new members or struggling members. There are lots of options for the book. At the price of only $20 I think it's well worth the money. I know I am on a limited budget living on one income, but I would say that this would be a book that every homeschooling mother should have on her resource shelf. I have a handful of books that I reread every year just for encouragement and this is the newest one added to the list. To purchase your copy click here.

I received this book as a review product as being part of the Old Schoolhouse Review Crew. If you would like to read more reviews for this book and various products click here.

So here is what's been happening in my world!

2010-02-25T08:24:00.002-06:00

It's been a while since I blogged just to blog. I have had lots of reviews on my agenda. I have a lot more before the end of the school year too. Sorry if your not hereing more about our homeschooling journey and personal life, but I do hope you are finding some of the products interesting. I do have some tidbits of pesonal stuff to share.

It's A Boy! No, I haven't had the baby yet, that's not until July. We had an ultrasound and are being blessed with another baby boy. Everyone is really excited in our house. We are searching for another perfect "L" name to go with Lilli, Lane and Lijah.

Lane turned 5 last Monday. The celebration started on Saturday afternoon and ended on Monday night with a very tired boy. Saturday we had a family party. Sunday Croix's grandparents took him snow tubing at Paoli Peaks. We went to the indoor water park in French Lick on Monday, which was his actual birthday. He had so much fun. Me and and the other kids did too. It was a day of treats. He requested fancy Krispy Kream donuts for breakfast. We ate a nutritious lunch of hot dog and chips and the water park. Chocolate ice cream shakes on the way home. Pizza for supper. All of his favorites. My digestive system is still paying the price, but I wouldn't have traded the day for anything.

Lilli has been busy working on a piece she will be putting in an art contest in March. She's coming right along as a little artist. She really enjoys it too. She requested a book on how to draw horses. It hasn't arrived yet, but I know she is excited to get it. She's going to a play this weekend with her aunt, cousins and a couple of friends from church on Sunday afternoon. 2 other boys from church are in the play. It's Charlotte's Web. She is looking forward to it and also to the independence of going somewhere without us.

Lijah's vocabulary is coming right along. He repeats nearly everything you say and retains it. He is much more attached to me than the other children ever were. We had Miss Anna when they were younger, but he's never been left with a sitter on the a regular basis. Even thought he's attached he is still very independent and playful. He tried whatever antics his older brother tries. I wonder what his response will be to his little brother.

Croix and I are trucking along. Looking forward to spring weather when we can get outside. Croix is still surveying on the side, but he's not been too busy with it lately. He's also still preaching some. That's his favorite thing and he would do it full time if he could. I'm enjoying being a wife and a mommy. I'm considering leading a bible study over the Created To Be His HelpMeet book written by Debi Pearl. Homeschooling is coming along, but I'm already looking forward to summer break. Me and my friend Aimee are getting away for 24 hours to go to the Indy homeschooling convention. We leave tomorrow and will be back Sat. evening. I am really looking forward to it.

So that's the Hodges Family in a nutshell. :)

I love Zeezok Publishing!

2010-02-19T07:34:00.004-06:00

I am in love with a new publishing company. It's called Zeezok! The resources they offer are exactly what I am looking for for our homeschool education experience. They offer materials on character building, great musicians, literature, presidential penmanship and they even have a unit study on ancient China that looks very good. I was privileged to receive a set of books from the Great Musicians series to review as part of The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew. To read more reviews click here.

The timing for the review of Frederic Chopin-Son of Poland couldn't have came at a more appropriate time. My children received a piano for Christmas and started lessons after the first of the year. The study of a young musician and composer fit write into their new discipline. I have always wanted to add music study into our classroom but I hadn't found a curriculum that suited our learning style.

What I received for my review was a story book of the life of Frederic Chopin-Son of Poland-Early Years. I also got the same book format but it was for the later years of Chopin's life. A study guide also came along . It had a timeline, reading comprehension questions, section on character qualities, and even some other tidbits of interest such as the geography of Poland. Finally, our favorite part was the Companion CD. It included musical selections from Chopin, coloring pages for each chapter and printable sheets of all the music. My daughter can't wait for the day when she can play some of the printed sheets.

So here's how I used the product. Each day we would read a section of the Chopin book while we were having lunch. The children were so engaged in the story that they would always ask for more. The book was filled stories about Chopin as a young child, his parents and siblings, his music teachers and his travels as a young musician.

During dinner our family would listen to the CD and the kids would share with their dad what they learned about Frederic Chopin. We didn't use the study guide or the extra resources on the CD, but if I wanted a more in-depth look at the great musician than they would have been just what I needed. I wanted a basic introduction to Chopin. We will save the curriculum and possibly revisit when they are a little older and more advanced in their own music study. I even believe that I could do an entire unit study using these resources because so much is found in the study guide.

I found Zeezok Publishing to be very affordable! The products that I received can be purchased seperately but if you buy them together you get the CD for free, which I highly recommend. The complete set is only $30.90. You can see the individual prices on each product by clicking here.

Other offerings in the Great Musician series include:

Edward MacDowell

Franz Schubert

Handel

Joseph Haydn

Ludwig Beethoven

Mozart

Robert Schumann

Sebastian Bach

Stephen Foster

Go to www.zeezok.com to learn more!

FactsFirst

2010-02-11T09:03:00.003-06:00

It seems that I've been reviewing a handful of online math practice programs, drills and curriculum's. If not careful they all begin to look the same. The most important thing about any online math application is that it reinforces or teaches math concepts and then that those concepts stick with the students using them. I believe that FactsFirst does an excellent job of doing that reinforcement. So what is it?

An online math program that helps students achieve automatically in the basic facts of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. This made factsfirst perfect for us since I have a 3rd grade daughter who is just who has mastered addition and subtraction and is now learning multiplication.

It works like this:
Students practice basic number facts over many sessions to build and reinforce the facts.

The thing I liked the best about fastfacts is that it presents real life problems. This idea helps to make math fit into the real world for students. It helps them see why it's important to know the facts even when not in math class. Another one of the cool things that separates this program from others, is the privilege of playing arcade style games at the accomplishment of a unit.

The cost is $49.99. I will admit that I did find the program cost a little more than I'm willing to pay for what is offered. That subscription can be used with up to 4 students which makes it more appealing. It is a one time purchase not a monthly payment option.

To read more reviews check out The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew.

Ray's Arithmetic from Dollar Homeschool

2010-02-07T19:36:00.002-06:00

Dollar Homeschool and Ray's Arithmetic

www.dollarhomeschool.com

Years ago 100 million students in one-room schoolhouses got first rate education using EES. So what is EES? EES is a set of text books that use the Eclectic Education Series. From 1865-1915 this WAS education in the Unites States. They were the standard textbooks in many states and were chosen independently by over 10,000 school boards as their standard textbooks. The EES covered every topic and included popular names such as McGuffey Readers and Ray's Arithmetic. So why did the U.S. stop using the EES? After WWI , John Dewey the head of the Teacher's College at Columbia University launched a campaign to reform education. Through that reform he did away with the EES system of education. The EES taught patriotism, traditional values and the Bible.

So what does all of this have to do with Dollar Homeschool? Dollar Homeschool is a company that is committed to bringing back this tried and true way of educating. The books are put out on cd so that you can print the books that made our country great!

Ray's Arithmetic is a complete K-12 math curriculum from counting to calculus. It was America's standard math text for 50 years. It is a full bodied math curriculum that dates back to the industrial revolution. click ere to read more about it. The Ray;s math series includes 38 printable books. 12 teacher book + answer keys, Teacher's Editions, and several book of mathematical pursuits for aspiring students such as surveying and navigation, astronomy, book keeping and physics. Click her to view a list of the entire collection of Ray's Arithmetic provided on cd.

Click here to see sample pages.

Purchase all of the book s for $59.00 on cd!
I believe that this is a great price for all of the material offered through Ray's Arithmetic. The cd includes all of the math lessons needed for your child's entire math education and you can use it with multiple students .

I was given access to the Ray's Arithmetic file as part of the Old Schoolhouse Review Crew for review purposes only. To read other reviews from other members of the crew click here.

How Do I Know What To Teach?

2010-02-01T10:22:00.003-06:00

I am going to start a series of posts that are for the reader who is just wondering if homeschooling might be right for you. I got this idea through the Old Schoolhouse Magazine Facebook Fanpage. There is link to this page to the right of this post. You will find other bloggers who have given their thoughts on how to know what to teach and other various topics. So here goes....

This post will give my explanation on how I decide what to teach to my children. This is a question that I have heard many want-to-be-homeschoolers ask. There are curriculums that have age appropriate packages that you purchase in accordance with your child's age or grade level. I did that one year and quickly knew that this route wasn't for me. Luckily, the company I purchased from had a money back guarantee. :) Since then learning what to teach has been a process.

The first part of the process was to determine what method of learning we wanted to use in our homeschool. There are a variety of styles and as you do more research on educating at home you will learn more about the different approaches. The second part was to decide what I wanted my children to learn in specific areas. I do this step each year as I evaluate our educational goals.
Once I realized the whole book, literature based Charlotte Mason approach to schooling was going to be the most effective form of learning for my students I began to read all I could about Charlotte Mason. I started looking for products that backed her way of teaching and talked to other mom's who I knew were schooling in a similar fashion. They shared with me their ideas on how they taught spelling, cursive, and language arts.

Along with lots of nature study, my husband and I agreed that we would take the creation approach to science. We wanted a science curriculum that fully backed our values and beliefs in this area. We read reviews on products and looked at homeschool conventions to find what we were looking for.

Where math was concerned, I took into consideration my daughters learning style and knew a colorful workbook approach would be best for her. I simply browsed booths at a homeschool convention to find what I needed. What I found was marked with a grade or age level. This is the only material that I use that is labeled in this way.

Finally in order to know what to teach, I have to listen to my intuition. I know the things that I think are important in an education. One of the reasons many people homeschool is because they want something different from what the public or private school has to offer. One of the greatest differences is that you can teach what you want and how you want and even gear everything to the interests of your students. In the beginning learning what to teach was a little nerve wracking, but now with a few years under my built I find it as one of the biggest joys of homeschooling.
Now for a little disclaimer, I am schooling a 3rd grader and a preschooler. I am not thinking about college prep at this point. As my daughter gets closer to 7th grade my approach to what I teach may change a bit. I know that we will gear her education more towards college preperation, but at this point we are just instilling the love of learning, the love of a good book and basic math princeples. If you are thinking about homeschooling an older student you will want to continue to research and talk to parents who have been down that road.

MathScore.com

2010-02-01T08:33:00.003-06:00

I homeschool my 9year old daughter and 5 year old son. We do a literature based, Charlotte Mason approach to schooling. With that said, we don't refer to the computer for a whole lot of our education. We have a set math curriculum that does a fine job of teaching and reviewing in a workbook style format. I wasn't sure when I was given a trial subscription to www.mathscore.com if it would be something we would find very useful. It didn't seem that my daughter had a need to online math drills.

When I logged my daughter in and went to the first basic drill I wondered if it would be challenging for her to maneuver since we haven't worked much with online math drills. She quickly picked up on the concept of the drill and was on her way. It was so EASY to use! When it was time to be done she didn't want to end.

I found that www.mathscore.com can be a complete math curriculum or a supplement for 2nd grade through Algebra 1. Each topic comes with a mini lesson. It's often been used with first graders and I even helped my 5 year old with the most basic worksheet. As a parent you get to choose the topics you want your child drilled on and there is no pre-test required. This an online, paperless program. Some other things that I found beneficial are:

-The drills are timed and the timer can be adjusted to meet the needs of the students so that they grasp the worksheet and feel successful and confident.
-Multiple students can be logged into one account.
-Drills are given on worksheets until the drill is mastered to 100%.
-There is a parental control section in which I can careful monitor all scores and progress.

I think www.mathschore.com is a fabulous supplement to any math program that you are already using in your homeschool. It's affordable at $9.95 per month for the first student, $5 per month for the 2nd student and only $3.95 per month for each additional.

You can have a free trial at the website and there is a coupon for 1/2 of a month free and $5 off the 1st child after that.

I received a free trial of mathscore for review purposes only. To read more reviews published by The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Rewiew Crew click here.

www.mathtutorDVD.com

2010-01-28T12:35:00.006-06:00

http://www.mathtutordvd.com/

If you have ever felt as if you needed or wanted a math tutor for one of your children but didn't know where to look for someone or if you could even afford a tutor than you should check out the website www.mathtutorDVD.com. This website sells DVD's for every math subject. This is my review of Young Minds-Number and Counting and The Basic Math Word Problem Tutor-8 hour course. I was given these products in return for a review in relationship with my affiliation with the Old Schoolhouse Review Crew.

The Young Minds series is designed to stimulate young children to take an interest in math at an early age. The videos are set to pictures,video, animation and instrumentals from the great composers such as Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Vivaldi and others. The Numbers and Counting DVD helps a child learn to count from 1-10, count animals and other every day objects, and has engaging photographs. My 5 year old son loved the video. He has watched it numerous times. He already knew how to count but it reaffirmed what he already knew. My 19 month old was even interested in watching the DVD. The cost for this DVD is $19.99.

The second video that I reviewed was The Basic Math Word Problem Tutor. I couldn't believe that this was 8 hours of an instructor teaching and working problems. It was like being in a private session with a math professor. The problems are worked out step by step. DVD's in this area focus on building essential math skills at the elementary and middle school level specefically dealing with basic word problems. The DVD's prepare the students to tackle pre-algebra, Algebra and beyond. Some of the topics covered are: adding and subtracting whole numbers, multiplying and dividing whole numbers, adding and subtracting decimals, multiplying and dividing decimals, fractions, percents, ratio and proportion. My daughter is just now being introduced to word problems using addition and subtraction. She hasn't viewed this section of the video yet, but I believe it will be something we will do together in the near future. The cost for the DVD is $26.99. I found this to be an exceptional value for the amount of content offered.

The www.mathtutorDVD.com website has many other resources too. I would recommend browsing the site yourself to see all of the DVD's offered. There are free clips to view of most of the DVD's. One thing I found very valuable is the Money Back Guarantee. If you are not 100% happy and you don't see results return the products for a full refund. That is great customer service and proof that the company believes in their products.

I highly recommend www.mathtutorDVd.com.

Wednesday, January 27th

2010-01-27T13:50:00.002-06:00

For Today

Outside my window....The sun is shining!!! YEA! It seems like it's been a while. It's very inviting too.

I'm Thinking.... I think I should take everyone outside for a little while when I'm finished with this. The older kids won't need to bundle up too much but Lijah will have to wear his snow pants. There is still a little snow and he will be on the ground and wet. I need to move my body. I haven't exercised since last Friday at homeschool co-op.

From the learning room....The children are doing so well with their school work. Lilli has a great attitude and Lane is picking up on phonics quite well. I have activities for the boys to do when I need to focus with Lilli. I'm glad I finally implemented this, it's making a world of difference in my attitude.

I am thankful for....A warm house and that I don't have to cook tonight.

From the kitchen....I can still smell the banana bread and banana muffins I made last night. It's Wednesday so we will be having dinner at church. I am so thankful for Wednesday church dinners!

I am wearing....Pink velour pants, tennis shoes, a light blue and white fleece sweatshirt. I'm going to change before church. I think I will wear jeans and turtleneck. My clothes situation is getting interesting. I'm don't need my maternity clothes yet but my regular clothes are getting too tight.

I am reading....Created to Be His Help Meet. I'm going to be leading a bible study that correlates with this book at church and I'm preparing by rereading the book and looking up the scripture references that I want to expound on . I'm also reading a book called the Happiness Project. A friend gave it to me. I'm not sure what I think about it yet.

I am hoping....to have a date with Croix tomorrow night.

I am creating....a list of Usborne books that I want to earn from an Usborne book party I'm having in Feb.

I am hearing....the dryer, a rooster crowing-he is so confused, the fan on the woodstove burning.

Around the house....it's in pretty good shape as far as cleanliness. I think I will do the bathroom this weekend.

One of my favorite things...reading aloud to Lilli.

A few plans for the rest of the week.....All 3 kids are staying at mom and dad's tomorrow night so Croix and I will be home alone, Friday homeschool co-op, Friday night family from church coming for dinner, Saturday a birthday party and dessert with the other's children's workers from church.

Christian Keyboarding

2010-01-26T18:45:00.008-06:00

Christian Keyboarding

When I set out last fall making objectives for my 3rd grade daughters school year "learning how to type" made it to the list. I knew there were typing programs on the market, but somehow when all had been purchased for the year a typing curriculum didn't make the cut. You can imagine how excited I was when I learned that I would be receiving a free typing e-book in return for a posted review through The Old Schoohouse Magazine Review Crew. The product I am reviewing is called Keyboarding for the Christian School-Elementary Version. This is a product created by Leanne Beitel of Christian Keyboarding.

The E-book contains an introduction, an explanation of the Touch Typing Technique and a break down as follows of the progression of lessons.
Lessons1-20 Alphabetic Keys
Lessons 21-25 Numbers & Symbols
Lessons 26-29 Number Pad
Lesson 30 Centering
Lesson 31 Enumerated Lists
Lesson 32 Timed Writings

The Touch Typing Technique is the same technique that I learned to type in as a freshmen in high school. My daughter is enjoying the lessons, especially when I leave her to do them on her own and don't stand over her shoulder. :) We haven't worked through the entire curriculum yet but I am certain that when we do she will be well on her way to using the keyboard effectively and efficiently.

Keyboarding for the Christian School is not the only typing program offered by Christian Keyboarding. The other e-books are:

Keyboarding lesson Plans for the Whole Semester
Columns 2003 or 2007
Tables 2003 or 2007
Teacher Tools
Interactive Resources are also offered through the website

One thing I found very valuable as I was looking over the website was the Homeschool Teaching Package. It includes Keyboarding for the Christian School, Teacher Tools, and lessons Romans Road Enumerated and Columns all for the low price of $27.00. You save $7.85 when you purchase the bundle.
A coupon is available of $5 off for any purchase of at least $12.95. Use coupon code NewYear5.
You can use it at www.christiankeyboarding.com

My Monday

2010-01-18T17:28:00.002-06:00

I love the fresh start of Mondays! No matter what last week was like or the weekend Monday brings a new beginning. We have had a great Monday at my house today.
-I woke up before the children and spent time in God's word and journaling.
-I made pancakes for breakfast, some with blueberries and some without. YUMMY!
-Croix was here to have breakfast with us. He was off work to do due to Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
-School went great! Lilli is progressing nicely with multiplication. Lane learned the Letter Q today. We are still camped out in Greece and the kids are loving it.
-Croix's grandmother came for a visit after lunch.
-Enjoyed a quiet time in the afternoon in which Lijah napped, and Lilli and Lane quietly read books. I was able to study in I Corinthians 1 which is where our small group started studying together last night.
-Had a 2 mile walk with my girlfriend. Exercise and fellowship were good for the body and the soul.
-Children did all of their chores without arguing or complaining!
-Nice, filling, simple supper.
-Croix almost has my washer fixed (I believing he will have it fixed tonight. :)
-I'm blogging and the children are playing Bendaroos together.
-We are going to play UNO and read more in the Chronicles of Narnia before bed.
-Early bed time so Croix and I can have some time to ourselves!

Nature Walk-Part 2

2010-01-13T15:32:00.003-06:00

We did make it out for the nature walk that I mentioned earlier. It felt great to be out in the sunshine! Lilli had a friend over so the two girls went to the club in the woods. Lane and I walked down the road and picked up some pine cones. When we got back to the house, we looked for a bird feeder to fill. I'm thinking it was broken when we put up our outside things for the winter, and so it gone thrown away.

We played in the yard a bit and let the bunny out in the turn out pin. Lane enjoyed feeding it a carrot. I carried an old pumpkin to the garden spot. It had been sitting on the porch staring at me since October, but for some reason I hadn't ever picked it up and carried it off.

I saw our neighbor in her yard and hollered for her to come and look at our new puppies. She is a major animal lover so she was glad to meet them. While I was visiting with her I had to keep my eyes on Lane. The neighborhood dog Chucky was sniffing around the rabbit pen and I didn't want Chucky to try to have a rabbit for dinner. Luckily, we didn't have any altercations.

Before we went in the house, we covered our pine cones with peanut butter and then dipped them in birdseed. Homemade bird feeders! Then the boys wanted a peanut butter snack of their own so we headed into the house.

What a nice afternoon to get some fresh air!

Mathletics Review

2010-01-13T09:52:00.003-06:00

Mathletics

Mathletics is a safe, online community for practicing 60 second math drills.

This site includes a complete math curriculum for grades kindergarten thtough 8th grade. Over 750 learning activities are offered through Mathletics. One of the things that I found most beneficial was that the site responds to individual needs of each player. Progress is tracked during the online drills and appropriate drills are offered to increase skill level.

There is parent section that also allows parents to see how their children are scoring and progressing through the programs. Weekly reports are emailed to parents. I found this online environment very safe to use. We are very conservative INternet users and our daughter doesn't get much access to the world wide web without me standing over her shoulder. I felt confident leaving her to work on drills alone on Mathletics.

There is step by step animated support. My daughter enjoyed creating her own character upon her first log in. She chose her hairstyle, hair and skin color, accessories, clothes and even a movie star background. This feature made Mathletics super appealing to her. My four year old son wanted to play just so he could create a boy of his own. Something I found interesting about the website is that it's the #1 site for math learning on the web. I think this is a fact that Mathletics can proudly boast about.

To order a mathletics got to www.mathletics.com . An annual subscription is $59 per student. This provides 24/7 access to Mathletics for 12 months. There is a 10 day money back guarantee if you find Mathletics is not for you.

I received a 45 day trial of Mathletics to review as part of the Old Schoolhouse Review Crew. To read more reviews click here

Nature Walk?

2010-01-13T09:33:00.002-06:00

I'm trying to work up the nerve to bundle everyone up and take a nature walk. I need to get outdoors and the boys especially do. I don't like being cold. I'm not sure the temperature today but the sun is shining and the outdoors look inviting. I know we will see something wonderful. God never ceases to amaze me with his creation. I have a bird feeder in the barn to fill. That could be one of our tasks while out.

We started piano lessons yesterday! They went great. The children shared with Croix what they had learned when he came home. They have already practiced a bit today. I have practiced too!

Lilli is nearly complete with her school work and it's just 10:30. Everyone was up with Croix at 6:00 this morning. Yikes, that was early but we were all rested. The children were sleeping by 9:00 last night and Croix and I by 10:00. I love going to bed early. It just doesn't happen so often. So back to Lil's school work, she's doing well with multiplication. We are consistently working on spelling, it's not something that comes easily for her. I never realized the English language makes no sense until I started trying to teach it. We are going to do Latin next year. I've heard it really helps with spelling and grammar. Pronouns are the focus for Language Arts right now and Sea Snakes and Sea Turtles for science. We have camped out on Greek myth for a bit while we are studying Ancient History. We do read aloud in the afternoon.

Lane counted some money this morning and learned the letter P. We are still dong Sing, Spell, Read & Write and he seems to be picking it up and enjoying it. That makes it a pleasure to teach him.

I've been cranking out the reviews as we have been in the house more. I am enjoying it, but I have at least 4 math reviews for the future. Math programs are hard for me to review especially when they are online. I realized I let one fall through the cracks back from November so I hope to have some time this afternoon to try the product out, let Lilli use it, and then blog about it.

We have AWANAS tonight. I'm looking forward to it. They serve dinner so I don't have to cook! My Genesis bible study is ready for my youth girls. I love our small groups on Wednesday nights. I actually just love being with the teens in a discipleship setting.

So that's today in a nutshell. The 2 older children are in my room playing quietly with LEGO's and Lijah is playing quietly somewhere. :) That's not a good sign. I'll let you know how the nature walk goes!

Kinderbach

2010-01-12T08:35:00.006-06:00

If your children would like to take piano lessons or you find value in having them learn a musical instrument than Kinderbach is a program you should look over. I received a free 3 month subscription so that I could review the website as part of The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew. I was super excited about this review since my children received a piano for Christmas.

Kinderbach is a web-based or CD driven curriculum for piano lessons for ages 3-7.

Supplies or items needed to use the program:

-Piano or basic electric keyboard

-Computer for viewing lessons or printing web pages

-high speed Internet

-DVD player optional

-CD player
-basic craft materials

Extra benefits of using Kinderbach besides your children learning to play the piano:

-All materials are provided by Internet download or in pdf format on CD. CD's have a lifetime guarantee.

-No music background is necessary by the parents for children to learn to play.

-There is a family membership price so that you aren't paying per child.
-After the initial viewing of the video, children will be able to go through lessons on their own.

-Learning in the comfort of your own home.
-2 weeks trial to try out before making a commitment.

How it works?

Kinderbach breaks down the various tasks and techniques of playing the keyboard and puts lessons into child sized portions. Learning is gradual and paced for a child. Plus, fun characters provide entertainment in the learning process.

Cost:
Year 1 year membership gives access to all 240 video lessons plus downloadable PDF pages. The one time price is $95.98. It breaks down to about $7.99 per month .
The year membership gives you access to a year of online lessons-6 levels of entertaining music education for 3-7 year olds through about 22 hours of video and interactive coloring pages. Miss Karri introduces preschoolers to the keyboard characters. Kids will enjoy simple songs, identifying music directions, learning new rhythm notes and their beat value. Level 1-6 covers proper hand and finger position for the music scale, as well as staff note reading by pattern for voice and keyboard. Lessons are taught by the week. Each week has an introduction and 4 sessions. The sessions are paired with the interactive coloring pages.

You may also choose a monthly membership. The cost is $19.99 per month and you have to commit to 12 months of membership.

From the parent reviews on the Kinderbach website I believe this program to be highly effective. To read more reviews from The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew click here.

Indians in the house!

2010-01-11T15:42:00.004-06:00

School started off a little late today. We slept a bit longer than we usually do, which meant I didn't have my quiet time before the children woke. So after breakfast I spent time reading in the rocking chair, while the children played together. While I was reading, they asked if they could get their craft book out. I agreed. They made Indian head dresses. They thought they would play Indians but I said we had to do some school first.
Lilli did a math lesson. She's still borrowing and carrying in addition and subtraction and doing beginning multiplication. Lane did some letter recognition work and Lijah worked puzzles and sorted shapes in his high chair. When complete, the kids were off to the prairie to play Indians. They asked me to make an "Indian lunch." Hmmm, an Indian lunch. So here was our menu:
Buffalo Ramen Noodle Stew
Fresh picked from our bountiful garden celery and carrots
I made a fresh nut spread (peanut butter) for the celery.
Milked the cow and made a dip for the carrots. (ranch dressing)

We set in the living room on a blanket that has horse pictures all over it. We were eating near our horses. :) Then I remembered seeing some art prints in our Picturing America Curriculum. I was excited to find 3 different famous prints and the lesson had great history that we discussed over our meal. Croix called during lunch and I answer with a "HOW!"

As you can see we had a non-conventional history lesson. I bet it's one my kids won't forget. We still did Language Arts and Science in the afternoon and Lane worked on the Letter O.

I wrote a review for The Old Schoolhouse. You can read mine and others @ TOS Crew reviews. It's for Bertie's War. A historical fiction account during the
Communist missile crisis.

Soup is simmering and it's just about time for dinner. What a great day in the life of the Hodges'.

Berties' War Review

2010-01-11T13:18:00.007-06:00

Bertie's War
By: Barbara Tifft Blakey
Published by Kregel Publishing

The main character of Bertie's War is a 12 year old girl named Bertie living in the 1960's during the Communist missile crisis. As you read through the book, you understand that Bertie's life is full of fear. Bertie experiences fear of her father, fear of what her peers think of her and fear of life in her community if hit by a nuclear missile. She experiences grief for the first time and a bit of puppy love too during the course of the book. I was waiting for the happy ending and it came in a small portion. I believe Kregel Publishing made a good choice when they decided to publish Bertie's War.

I would recommend this book as a read aloud for the younger student. My reason for this is for all of the emotions portrayed. These would need to be discussed. I also found religion in the book but not a true repentant relationship with the Savior. The sinful behavior may need to be talked through with the younger listener. I would suggest an older reader enjoying this book as an independent read.

The cost is only $7.99 per copy and can be obtained at Kregel Publishing along with many other titles. If you would like to read more reviews you may do so through at the TOS Crew page.

I received this book as a gift from Kregal Publishing for review purposes only.

Piano lessons and puppy shots

2010-01-10T16:37:00.003-06:00

Some weeks as a a homeschooling, stay-at- home mom I feel a little hum drum, but this week I'm excited! It's Sunday evening. We have been home all weekend because Croix preached today so he was studying. I stayed up last night after the kids went to bed to go over our lessons for the week. I mapped out Lilli's assignments and created some goals and objectives for the younger boys. When I have the days [lanned out I am more excited and on task.
We bought the children a piano for Christmas and they start lessons on Tuesday. My brother-in-law, Tyson, is coming to the house to give them. I can read music just a bit so I'm thinking I can eavesdrop on the kids lessons and learn how to play too. We are blessed to have someone coming here.
We have 2 new border collie puppies and we are taking a field trip to the vet's office this week too. The pups need their first shots and wormer. Lilli is saving her money for a digital camera and she's almost got it all. I will be glad when she gets it because then she can take pictures and I can post them on here. The puppies are soooo cute.
We also have homeschooling co-op on Friday. It was canceled last week due to snow. I'm ready to see all of the other families again. We spent New Year's Eve with quite a few, but not everyone. Croix's leading a small group that starts a weeks from day. We have taken a break from the small group thing for about 3 months but I'm ready to get started again. I miss the fellowship of other believers each week. My kids are also looking forward to spending time with some of their friends during the bible study.
Lilli is in the kitchen making cornbread so I better get in there. I can hear her dad supervising, but I would still like to take a peak over their shoulders. Have a great week!

I love a snow day!

2010-01-07T20:12:00.002-06:00

I love it when it snows. Not just a little flurry here or there, but the kind of snow that sends everyone in Orange County to the grocery store the day before, the kind that cancels public school and the kind that causes the annual Cousin's Sledding Day. Today was one of those days. Actually yesterday was one of those days as I made a mad dash to the grocery to do a much needed stock for the fridge and the pantry.
The snow was expected to start in around midnight last night. When I woke up around 3:30 and it hadn't started yet I thought "Old Man Winter" has passed on by my house, but he was just running a little late. Unfortunately for Lilli snow days don't constitute a no school day at our house but, the snow is a great bargaining tool to get school work completed quickly. By 11:00am school was done and the 2 older children were outside shoveling, sledding, and playing. I was inside making hot chocolate and putting on soup for lunch. I was also listening to Lijah whine for the "guys" because he wanted to be outside too. I had talked to my mom earlier and she had called for a "Cousins Sledding Day" since she was off school as well as my niece and nephew.
My dad picked us up around 3:00 and we headed over to my parents. You know how it is when you going to be out in the snow. You have boots, hats, coats, bibs, gloves, scarves and etc. I had went through our gear before Christmas to see what we needed so everyone was outfitted for a day of winter play, even Lijah. This was Lijah's first experience with snow and his first official sledding day. He was too young to be out last year. He loved it. He wouldn't have went in if I hadn't made him. Just about the time the cousins were heading to the house Croix pulled in, he had been working. So me and my kids stayed out for one more ride down the hill together. Ok, I admit I just watched because I'm rather precautionary when I'm pregnant and I didn't want to take any sledding accident chances.
We spent the evening at mom and dad's. We had dinner and snow ice cream. Yummy! Now we are home and the children are settled snug in their beds. What a day this has been. I love seeing my children enjoy themselves. I love their laughter and their excitement and the red chapped faces and the hot chocolate mustaches. I love it that I didn't have to count up my hours to be off or talk to my boss or call in a sitter. I was here enjoying an amazing day with my babies. To top it all off it looks like we are going to be able to do it again tomorrow......and I think daddy has already decided he'll be home with us!

Heartbeat!

2010-01-05T14:47:00.000-06:00

We heard the baby's heartbeat today!

Life with me!

2009-12-31T08:27:00.002-06:00

What a week it has been. I've got a lot accomplished but I'm not really sure what it has been. :) Ever had days, weeks, or months like that? I'm feeling great now since I've entered into my 2nd trimester of pregnancy. It seems like I let things go around home those first few weeks because I didn't feel like doing anything but schooling the children and maintaining the daily household chores. So now that I'm back and at it this week has been a lot of catch up. Here's my list of things accomplished this week, just so I can reflect, you can skip this part if it bores you.
-Laundry caught up and most of it put away
-Kitchen and living room thoroughly cleaned
-All Christmas decorations taken down
-Wrote 3 product reviews for the Old Schoolhouse Magazine
-Read a book to be reviewed for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
-Posted on my blog a couple of times
-Visited with out of town family on Monday evening and on Wednesday evening
-Made New Year's Eve Plans
-Read books to the children
-Watched a movie with the children
-Worked on my 2010 calendar
-Worked on 2010 homeschool plans
-Set the details for our new small group starting Jan. 17.
-Wrote the youth article for the church news letter.
-Texted one of my best friends A LOT! Good thing I have unlimited texting!
-Reserved a room at the West Baden Dome in French Lick for me and my man!
-Home cooked all week
-Cleaned off the bar a couple of times (why is this the catch all place in my house?)
-Figured out a system for containing all of the winter coats, hats, bibs, coveralls and etc.
-Got acclimated to the 2 puppies that are our newest family members
-Helped Lilli do some creative writing on the computer.

Maybe that doesn't look like a lot to some but to me it's tons compared to what the past few months have looked like. I'm looking forward to a the new year now that I've got myself and my home together.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Tektoma-What is it?

2009-12-31T07:47:00.005-06:00

Gaming! Gaming? Gaming.

Some people say the word gaming with excitement over the newest technology on the Internet to create top notch activities for online entertainment. When I hear gaming I think Candy Land & Guess Who! Some people say the word gaming with a question in their voice. What exactly do you mean by online gaming? Is that gambling or too much exposure to the Internet or something I want my children to be doing? Quite frankly if your like me the question comes because I have pretty much no idea about online gaming. Finally, there are those who say gaming pretty matter of fact. It's a common word and a common practice around their home. It's a skill that's been learned, a activity that passes time, provides pleasure and has educational and value for future success.

Now let me just say the word TEKTOMA! That's right Tektoma. I had never heard of this website before The Old Schoolhouse Magazine asked me to give an honest review of the product. In order to review Tektoma I was given a 3 month membership to their website and here's what I found out.

Tektoma is a company that provides 24 hour 365 days a year access to tutorials that teach children computer game programming. Yes, it teaches them how to make there own games. Tektoma is a totally safe place for our children to be. I checked through the site and found nothing offensive and they pride themselves on the safety of their site. The site teaches children as young as 7 to create computer games. That means this site knows how to engage and keep the attention of young people.

Benefits of using Tektoma:

The video tutorials vary by age level and skill level so your membership can provide gaming experience for everyone in your house.

Learn at your own pace in the comfort of your own home.

Natural progression helps develops technical skills.

You can customize your learning experience.

Low membership fee give access to all resources in the site.

You can create games, play games and share games.

The cost is only $14.95 per month or $140.00 per year.

Order a subscription online at http://www.tektoma.com/

Try a free 14 day trial to see if Tektoma would be right for you.

My personal thoughts on this product: My family and I know nothing about creating games and we don't play games online. I didn't even know there was such an interest by children in this area, but by looking through Tektoma I can tell there are many children who are very into online games and knowing the nuts and bolts of creating them. I also know from buying my nephew's games, for their gaming systems for Christmas, that Tektoma is a much more affordable alternative than purchasing new games all the time. I believe that if any of my children showed an interest in learning the skill of computer programming Tektoma would be the first place I would take them. It's safe, it's affordable and it does a great job teaching a skill that can be used in the real world. I give Tektoma 2 Thumbs up for teaching me a little more about gaming and opening my eyes to this area of the internet.

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Awesome Offer

2009-12-29T15:08:00.003-06:00

The Old Schoolhouse is my Favorite homeschooling magazine. If your aren't a subscriber you have got to get in on this deal! The magazine has articles for every homeschooler on the spectrum. I look for to receiving my magazine, read it cover to cover and pass it on. If I've passed it on to you before here's your chance to get your own subscription. The subscription won't be this cheap for a long time!

The Old Schoolhouse magazine is saying goodbye to their $7.95 subscription offer on midnight on Dec. 31, 2009. There's still time to treat yourself or share the gift of homeschool encouragement with your family and friends.

Receive 4 issues of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine RIGHT NOW for only $7.95. That is less than $2 per issue. Order the 1 year plus current issue option and enjoy the winter issue in January 2010 for just $12.95.

Plus, new and renewing subscribers get bonus gifts!

Hurry Dec. 31 is the deadline for the sale price!

http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/Homeschooling/Almost-Gone.htmthe

Don't miss out this offer. I know this winter when days are dreary, the kids are uncooperative, and your longing for some time outside you will find encouragement in your Old Schoolhouse Magazine! Subscribe today!

Maestro Classics

2009-12-29T14:12:00.004-06:00

WWW.MaestroClassics.com

Maestro Classics-An Awards Winning CD Series

Each Cd set includes:

An enchanting story set to great music

Superb recording by the London Philharmonic Orchestra

Educational tracks describing the creation of music, composer's' lives, musical compositions and more

Activity booklet included

Maestro Classics produces classic stories set to classical music! As part of the The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew I was given a CD set of The Tortoise and the Hare to review. As soon as I received the set, I placed the CD in the CD player for my 4 year old to listen to. He was mesmerized by the music and the voice of the narrator. He listened attentively to the entire story as it only lasted $20 minutes. When it was over we looked through the activity book together. There were pictures of all the instruments used in the orchestra. A page was included on notes, fractions and time signature so as to better understand how music is divided. Then there were pictures and information about turtles, tortoises, rabbits and hares. He is an animal lover so this section was his favorite. A dot to dot, word jumble and crossword puzzle were included as well. Plus, photos and pictures of Stephen Simon the conductor, Bonnie Ward Simon the Executive Producer & Yadu the Narrator.

Other Stories in Music Series include: Mike Milligan and His Steam Shovel

Casey At The Bat

Juanita, The Spanish Lobster

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

The Story of Swan Lake

Peter & the Wolf

Each set Only $16.98. I think this is a great value. It's a great introduction to classical music and classical stories.

SPECIAL Offer: 3 sets for Only $45 when you use coupon code MAESTRO45

Order online a www.MaestroClassics.com

Please pray for us.

2009-12-22T13:26:00.002-06:00

Friends,
Please keep my little family in your prayers during the holidays. As you know we went through an intense time with Lane just a couple of weeks ago. Praise the Lord he is alive & well! Last week Croix's grandfather passed away. He had been going down hill for the last 18 months. We thought we would be relieved when he passed as we knew he would be in heaven with Jesus, but that is not what we are feeling right now. My young family is for the first time experiencing grief. Lilli, especially, is having a very hard time. She was very brave during Lane's emergency and was very strong during her Papaw's visitation and funeral, but during the last 2 weeks she has experienced many emotions that she has never experienced before. Please pray for her as she depends on Jesus for comfort. Keep Croix I lifted up to as we are trying our best to help her grieve and still very sad ourselves.

Have a Merry Christmas,
Jacqui

Exploracise-Gymathtics

2009-12-12T09:34:00.004-06:00

http://www.exploramania.com/

What fun my kids had watching and exercising to the Gymathtics DVD I received as a review resource for The Old Schoolhouse review crew. I opened the package, popped it in the DVD player and asked the kids if they wanted to watch? Before I knew it they were both up kicking, jumping, squatting, bending and more. They were moving there bodies and learning math skills at the same time! They didn't even know they were learning. Exploaracise says that "Gymathtics is an Interactive Math and Exercise Experience." I totally agree!

The DVD teaches math and healthy lifestyle concepts while performing a complete exercise routine. Scientific research shows that movement in combination with learning enhances retention and recognition. The exercise program is great for kids of all ages. The math facts are targeted to 2nd-5th grade levels.

The Complete Program Includes:
Shape Stretches Warm Up-Stretch your mind and body with line, circles and polygon stretches.

Counting Calisthenics:
Aerobic movements work your heart as fun counting concepts work your brain.

Pattern Power:
Growing and repeating pattern exercise combinations challenge minds and strengthen muscles.

Well Being Wind Down:
Relaxing stretches cool down the body and open the mind to think about healthy lifestyle choices.

The running time for the video is approximately 30 minutes. My 4 year old made it through the whole thing. They also offer other great exercise DVDs to choose from.

The DVDs are a great value at only $24.99!

Exploramania has received numerous awards and celebrity endorsements. A few of the awards are:
Telly Award
Dr. Toy Award
Creative Child Magazine DVD of the Year Award

You can view all of these accolades and purchase the dvd's at their website: http://www.exploramania.com/

Literally the breath of life

2009-12-05T20:22:00.003-06:00

It's Saturday evening and I think I can gather my thoughts enough to write this blog. My family has experienced a miracle in the last 24 hours. I believe that God literally placed his mouth over the mouth of my son and said "let me breathe for you for a bit." Let me explain.
I was geared up for the annual sister and mom shopping weekend. We headed north on Friday afternoon. Stopping all along highway 37 to do Christmas shopping. We were to end in Bloomington as we do every year. We have an overnighter and enjoy some great times together. About 6:00 on Friday, Lilli called on my cell phone and told me that Lane had swallowed something and he wasn't breathing well. I asked if daddy was there and he said he was and he had called 911. I asked her to get her baby brother and take care of him while dad was tending to Lane. I hung up and immediately called Sally. She's my good friend, neighbor and nurse. I asked her to go to my house and see what was going on. Lilli called me back crying and told me she was scared and that she went into my room and was praying. I started to get a little shook at this point, I asked if Lane was breathing she said yes but not good. The first responders had arrived and then the ambulance and then Sally. I talked to Sally. She very calmly told me what was going on, they were taking him to Paoli to the ER and that I might want to head that way. I was in Bloomington an hour away. What a dear friend I have. She knew the situation was very serious but that I needed to stay calm and safe while getting home so she led me to believe that it was a minor incident.
We got in the car and started driving. I kept calling the Paoli Hospital asking for info and they said he had never been brought in. Croix finally called me when we were about 20 minutes away and said they were loading him straight to the helicopter and taking him to Kosair's Children's Hospital in Louisville. Croix couldn't get on the helicopter with him. At this point I lost it. All I could think about was my little guy all alone in the helicopter. Croix reassured me that he was breathing but that there was something lodged in his windpipe that was blocking his breathing. Croix waited for me to get to Paoli and we drove to Louisville together.
I then realized that Lane was going to get to the hospital before we did and there would be no one there that he recognized. I thought of my friend Jessica who lives only about 15 or 20 min from the hospital and called and asked her to go. My aunt had also been notified about the situation and she called her son and his wife to go and meet him. As I was telling Croix this, he informed me that when he had called his parents they had been in Clarksville having dinner and they would be at the hospital when the chopper landed. I was so relieved to know that Mamaw and Papaw would be there. How God worked this out was so beautiful and comforting.
When we arrived Lane was in the ER with an oxygen mask on. He was drawing on a magnadoodle. I could tell he was glad to see me. He looked so little and pitiful in that big hospital. We met with a surgeon and anesthesiologist and they said after viewing xrays that they were going to need to put him to sleep and put a scope down his throat to remove what was there. The doctors and the staff were so caring and amazing. Lane never showed the slightest signs of fear.
They took him in for the surgery and in about 20 minutes they were done. The recovered a sharp piece of plastic off of a toy. When the surgeon gave it to us he said he didn't know how he was getting any air. His wind pipe was almost completely blocked. I knew immediately that my Savior, Jesus Christ, had been giving my baby boy the breath of life.
I am just at the 24 hour mark and I can't type this without rejoicing! How life has the potential to change so quickly. I am so thankful that God didn't decide to take my boy home to heaven. I would have understood if that's what he had wanted but I'm so thankful that he's still with us!

Insomnia

2009-12-01T23:12:00.002-06:00

Ok, I don't think I have insomnia but I'm having a really hard time falling asleep. I'm 8 weeks pregnant and the sleeping issues started 3-4 weeks ago. I am the kind of person who can sleep anywhere, but lately I find myself laying in bed for an hour or two just trying to get to sleep. Or I dose off and just start to dream and then I'm wide awake again. It's 12:15 now and I finally decided to get up because I have prayed for everything I can think to pray about and mentally solved all the worlds problems and still my eyes are like saucers.

I am going Christmas shopping my my 2 sisters and my mother this weekend. It's an annual tradition. We leave Friday afternoon and don't come home until Sat. evening. It's the 1 time a year that we are able to get together with no other distractions. I can't wait for Friday to get here. Maybe I'm excited and that's why I can't sleep tonight....who knows.

Today was full of fun excitement. I had my 3 year old nephew over and my friend and her 5 children. My friend and I visited for 4 hours. Yes, I said 4 hours. When we get together it's like time disappears. I never allow myself to do that, but I do on the times when our families are together. The children play with no arguments that they don't easily work out and she and I chat about everything we can think of. It had been a while, maybe a month since we had all been together so it was quite the day.

I've been thinking of baby names. I like Liam for a boy. Croix isn't going for it. We had a boy named picked out. It was Lincoln. We kept it to ourselves and Croix's sister had a beautiful baby boy last summer and he is the perfect Lynkon. So Lincoln is out for us, but that's ok because i can't imagine a better name for my little nephew. I like the name Jubilee for a girl. I am aware that Jubilee doesn't start with an L and all 3 of the other children have L names but I keep coming back to this name. Maybe Leena Jubilee.

So I can't think of anything else to ramble about. I'm still not tired. I think this may just be one of my side affects of pregnancy this time around. I don't mind being up late, I actually kind of like it. The only problem is when I stay up late I like to sleep late and that's not real conducive to the 17 month old who stands in his bed at 7:30am saying "Mommy, Mommy. Mommy."

Good night, sweet dreams, sleep tight and yada yada. If anyone knows any safe sleeping remedies let me know. :)

All About Spelling Review

2009-11-28T13:53:00.004-06:00

WWW.ALL-ABOUT-SPELLING.COM

This review is for All About Spelling. All About Spelling is a multisensory approach to spelling competency. This is a program for students who are just learning to spell or for remedial spellers who need some extra help. One of the benefits of this spelling system is that it takes a multisensory approach to mastering spelling concepts. Students use sight, sound and touch in each days lesson. It's also very logical as each lesson builds on the previous lesson. Reviews are done each day over concepts that have not been mastered. As they are mastered then they are put into the mastered category. Review is constant so no rules are forgotten. The lesson plans are very scripted so there isn't much teacher preparation.

There are a few items that are mandatory to use All About Spelling. Tiles, Magnet Phonograms and CD Rom with the proper pronunciation of the phonograms.
These items may be purchased from All About Spelling as a starter kit for $26.95. The tiles are small laminated pieces with each letter of the alphabet printed on them. The consonants and vowels are color coded respectively. Students move these as they are learning to put letter sounds together. They are magnetized. My kids liked using them on the refrigerator. A teachers manual and student material kit is also helpful. The cost for this is $29.95. This is for Level 1. The Level 2 kit is $39.95. The program goes up to 6 levels. I would not have understood the program without the teachers guide. It is mandatory as it holds the lesson plans for the day.

I received Level 1 & Level 2 to review from All About Spelling as part of the Old Schoolhouse Review Crew. You may read more reviews and purchase this product at
www.ALL-ABOUT-SPELLING.COM

Virginia Soaps & Scents

2009-11-27T13:18:00.006-06:00

http://www.virginiasoapsandscents.com/

I opened a fancy little package from Virginia Soaps & Scents and I was soooo excited! This little package meant that The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew would get the privileage of offering our thoughts on Virginia Soaps & Scents products. The company had scent a gift, oops I mean sent a gift. :) It was bed & breakfast size small samplers to try and review. There is just something about handmade soaps that seem luxuroius yet down home and simple. I couldn't wait to get started on the review!

My entire family got to be in on the review of these products. We received 3 soap bars, a shampoo bar and my favorite.....a laundry soap kit. The scents for the soap bars were coconut lemongrass, fresh orange and oatmeal milk and honey. They were wrapped in plastic with a sticker that gave away the name and the scent. Each bar lathered unlike its store bought counter parts. Virginia Soaps are real soaps, not detergent products. All natural ingrediants are used. Coconut oil gives the big fluffy lather. The scent from the bar would freshen up the entire bathroom. We used our bars one at a time and we were sad as each one came to a small tidbit. One bar is 4.75 ounces and the cost is $4.50. There are special savings as you increase the number of bars you purchase.

http://www.virginiasoapsandscents.com/

The shampoo bar in the scent of gingerlime came in our package too. I had never heard of a shampoo bar, but simply it's a bar of soap made to be used as shampoo. I loved using this simple item in my shower. I would just get my hair wet, rub the bar on it a couple of times and the lather was unbelieveable. My hair looked and felt great after each use too. I have fine thin hair so I was afraid it might somehow be too heavy for my hair but it wasn't. The cost of the shampoo bar is $5.50 for 5.5 ounces. I think this would provide about as many washes as a 32 oz. bottle if not more. You can also use the shampoo all over if you have very dry skin and you may even shave with it too!

Finally, the Laundry Soap Kit. I was blessed to receive this product. I have been wanting to make my own laundry soap for quite some time but hadn't got around to getting all of the materials together and just wasn't quite sure about how long it would take. I also wasn't clear if it was going to be safe for my front load HE washer. Thankfully, it works great in my machine. It only takes 1/4 of a cup to complete a load. My daughter and I made the laundry soap in about 15 minutes. It was so simple, non -messy and non-toxic. The kit makes 2 gallons and will do 64-72 loads. The cost is only between 4 to 7 cents per gallone! It contains a grated bar of unscented lard cleaning soap, pre measured borax and washing soda. The kit is ONLY $3.95. If you would like to measure out and provide your own ingrediants you may just purchase the cleaning bar for $3.95. The soap cleans beautifully and is all natural for our environment.

Virginia Soaps & Scents is a home based business by a homeschooling family. They have a very unique story. You should go to their website at http://www.virginiasoapsandscents.com/ and read how this grieving family started such a wonderful business. You will be surprised by all that you find is offered on the website. Make sure and check it out before the holidays I know you will find a few gifts for those on your shopping list and maybe even a gift for your own Christmas stocking.

Virginia

2009-11-27T13:18:00.001-06:00

Virginia

2009-11-27T13:18:00.000-06:00

Virginia

I have to get another dig. camera

2009-11-23T12:01:00.001-06:00

I wish someone besides me could see my middle son on the back step with his chicken. He is tenderly holding her, stroking her and speaking quietly to her. We have sliding glass doors in the kitchen and he's setting on the steps that lead out so I have a perfect view of my little man and his hen. I had no idea when I agreed to a few chicken what friends they would become to my children. The eggs are just an added bonus. I have also found that they are quite a source of entertainment for the entire family. Since we can see them from our dinner table we often talk about them and laugh at the way they aggravate each other. Oh, how I love the simple things in my life!

This is the day that the Lord hath made

2009-11-21T19:49:00.002-06:00

What a great Saturday the Hodges family experienced! It started out with blueberry waffles. I received a waffle maker for my birthday and we are loving it. Today was the first day we added blueberries. We were blessed by some friends who grow blueberries. They gave us about 16 cups of frozen berries. They were perfect in the waffles. After breakfast, Croix was going to his parents to help move some furniture. He said he'd only be gone a hour or two. We all went along. Two of the cousins were there and we ended up staying until 2:30. It was a nice relaxing day. I jumped on the trampoline with Lijah and Lilli. I also took a nap. We spent some time at the barn with the horses. Oh, I can't wait until the horses are at our house. Lilli and I jogged to Croix's sister's house and visited with her. His mom asked if the boys could stay all night. We said YES! Lilli got a call to a play at a friends so we took her on the way home.
Croix and I enjoyed the rest of the day hanging out together. We stacked wood and piddled around outside. I fed the rabbit and cleaned out it's waste pan and took the rotten pumpkins to the garden spot. Then, I took a bath and read a book. Then we went to town and got Chinese food.
Now he's studying for his sermon tomorrow. Lilli and her friend are watching a movie. I'm going to post on the homeschool blog about the geography fair and I think that will be the day. We had no agenda for the day and went with the flow of things. It's been wonderful and relaxing.

Aaah...Home Sweet Home

2009-11-17T16:58:00.002-06:00

I love being home with my family. Croix, Lilli, Lane and Lijah. I sometimes think I'm going to pull my hair out as the kids are arguing, baby is fussing and Croix wants my undivided attention after a long day but still yet there is "no place like home."
For so long in my life I wouldn't give in to the built in desire that told me home was a place for me to call my own. Home was a place of training and contentment and hospitality. It was a place of quiet rest and even excited chaos. A place that my soul was yearning to be. I was caught in the world's glitter and gold. I wanted all that a career could offer: money, recognition, travel, glamour,prestige, and leadership. Even in my pursuit for those things there was always a longing inside of me for the simple things of home.
This evening as I listen to all 3 of my children playing knights with light sabers in the living room and hear the wood stove burning and smell dinner and yummy candles I know that my inner desires won out.....God's plan for my life won out.....I finally obeyed and I'm right where I'm supposed to be.......at home.

American Heritage Education Foundation

2009-11-17T11:57:00.006-06:00

www.americanheritage.org

The American Education Foundation is a non-profit, non-partisan foundation that is dedicated to the understanding and teaching of America's factual heritage. I became acquainted with the organization as I worked to review one of their resources for The Old Schoolhouse review crew. This is my review of the free classroom curriculum published by the foundation

I received a CD entitled America's Heritage: An Adventure in Liberty. It is a social studies/civic K-12 lesson plan resource CD. The purpose of the curriculum is to assist teachers in educating young people about America's factual, philosophical heritage based on themes of freedom, unity, progress and responsibility. The units are broken down into themes and character studies. Each unit has a specific listed purpose. For example, November's lay out goes as so:

Purpose:
The purpose of this lesson is to introduce students to the American Patriotic symbols.

Objective:

The student will be able to identify elements and American patriotic symbols including the Great Seal of the United States.

Theme:

Unity

Each lesson includes the amount of time you will take to teach it, other materials needed and preparation time.

The Focus section allows you to begin teaching. This aides you in guiding your student into focusing on the theme of the lesson.

A hands-on Activity is also suggested. For this particular unit the activity is to have students research a city or school flag or emblem or a family crest. Then have the student design their own emblem or seal.

There is a Closure section in which you wrap up what you have studied and an Assessment tool.

This curriculum provides a year long look at American History. The beautiful thing is when you receive it in the CD format is is FREE of charge. If you decide you would like to have a printed and bound format you may receive that too for only $19.50. This covers printing and shipping.

There are other resources available at www.americanheritage.org and additional information.

www.abcteach.com

2009-11-17T11:15:00.008-06:00

http://www.abcteach.com/

The online resource for your children's education.

The abcteach website is a plethora of information. I think it would benefit any homeschooling family to use abcteach as their one stop educational resource. I was privileged to be given access to all of the site information in order to submit a review on behalf of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine review crew.

http://www.abcteach.com/ is an educational website with over 5000 free printable pages and worksheets. The categories for the free pages are:

reading comprehension
research/reports

teaching extras

power point
portfolios

flashcards

holidays, months, seasons

themed units

think green/teach green

learning centers

prek/early childhood

middle school/jr. high

parents & homeschoolers

fun activities

clip art

languages/ESL

My favorite categories to use are holidays, months, seasons and prek/early childhood.

I have a preschool age child and abcteach has served as the perfect place to look for activities for him. Two things that he loves to do are cut and paste and matching. I searched out Thanksgiving activities and found a matching game that served as a visual reminder of the beginnings of the Thanksgiving holiday. There were pictures of the Mayflower, Squanto, pilgrims, turkey and etc. The game served as a spring board for me to casually teach my son about Thanksgiving. You can also find cut and paste for colors, letters, shapes and numbers.

The abcteach website has over 5000 free pages but the site contains 35,000 pages and worksheets. You gain access to the sites entirety by becoming a member. The categories for members of the site are:

language arts

history

science

foreign language

spelling units

testing

handwriting

reading comprehension

writing

hands on activities

art and crafts

and much more.

The worksheets are for prek-8th grade. More worksheets are added to the site weekly.

As a member you can even create custom worksheets.

To receive total benefit of http://www.abcteach.com/ you only pay around $3.33 per month for a total of $40 per year. This gives you access to the entire site which includes clip art, signs and the customizable worksheets.

To sign up go to http://www.abcteach.com/

Click on membership

Click on new individual membership. The cost is less than $40 if you have friends who sign up with you. The details of this are available at the time of sign up.

You will receive access to the site as soon your credit card is entered.

Youth Lock In Pics

2009-11-10T20:15:00.006-06:00

Kyla, Kaylie, Lindsay & Shay.The K's went to sleep quick. The L & S didn't! A few more girls who stayed up way to late or early, depends on how you look at it. I didn't get to sleep until 5:00am and got up at 8:00am tp get ready for church!----------------------->

I should have made this pic bigger, but I didn't. This is Croix in his nerd costume for the lock in. Randy dressed as a baby in a blanket sleeper, bib anb baby bonnet. They were really funny. Thank goodness we have Paula & Randy in our lives since we don't think of things to do to make people laugh.

CBC Youth Lock In

2009-11-08T00:13:00.003-06:00

I will post some pics when I get them. We are having a great time tonight at the Central Baptist Youth lock-in. We have 21 kids here and other parents who are great volunteers. God is awesome! I am so glad that Croix and I have stuck around in student ministry. The kids we have here tonight are absolutely amazing.
They are watching Nacho Libre right now so I think that means they are winding down. It's 1:17. I've had a lot of coffee so I'm still pretty fired up. I won't sleep until the girls are tucked into their sleeping bags and my air matress is shoved against the door. :) We don't want any escapees in the night.

2009-11-05T18:04:00.003-06:00

Baby Lijah loves playing outside! He actually loves most everything. Such a joy in my life, just like his brother and sister.

2009-11-05T17:52:00.002-06:00

Lane loves all sports! He played soccer on a team this fall. This was a perfect autumn day for a little baseball.

Lilli

2009-11-03T14:25:00.003-06:00

My beautiful girl! She will be 9 in 2 weeks. I can hardly believe it!

Life In My Community

2009-11-01T08:45:00.002-06:00

Did you ever think the thought that when you are exclusively connected with a church body it becomes your community? Yes, we are a part of a larger community that includes the area we live in, but I mean the community of people that you do life with. For me this extends far beyond my family. I am so blessed by a very special community. If you have never set down roots in the local church and if your church doesn't functioned biblically than you may not be able to understand where I'm coming from. We have had a magnificent weekend within the community of our church.
Friday night we had dinner with another couple we know from church. This couple has teens . They also have children the same ages as our oldest 2 and they homeschool. We spent a week together during the summer on a mission trip to Myrtle Beach. We would say we know them well.
We enjoyed dinner and dessert with our friends. We had a great time of fellowship and conversation. Spending time with other like minded individuals is so refreshing to your soul. After our dinner date, we headed back to there place where all the children were. We visited and watched a funny movie until midnight! That night we talked about everything from Christ's return, homeschooling, sex ed with our kids, listened to jokes, learned some things about how to become a nurse and the list goes on and on. You see in community you have freedom to share without being judged or condemned. It's also this community that you can turn to when life has sent you something that is unbearable or when your at the end of your rope as a parent or when God is teaching you a hard lesson.
On Saturday night our church community was privileged to represent Christ to our town wide community as we shared during Halloween night that Jesus is the Light of the World. The church came together for an amazing time of outreach and fellowship. I wasn't looking forward to it because in year's past my family hadn't participated in Halloween activities, but this year we decided that we would do it under the prayer banner of the Lord. It was amazing the way the Lord allowed us to share with the parents who visited our parking lot during the evening. I know when it was all over and we gathered around the bond fire as body of believers and prayed for God's planted seeds to be cultivated and his harvest to begin that He heard the prayers. What a better way to spend a night, intended for the enemy's evil, giving God glory and expressing that to others who may never know the truth. Only in a community of believers could this event and the fellowship have been so sweet!
Finally, as I'm ready for church an hour early, due to the time change, I can hardly wait to get to the church house. I know that as we take a look this week and over the next few at the book of Galatians that God is going to see a fresh belief in His word from the people at CBC. What a privilege we have to come together with brothers and sisters in Christs who are learning to be disciples. Together we grow towards the Savior as the word is brought forth in a mighty and powerful way. Only to God be the glory.
If you aren't connected with a local group of Christ-Centered believers find one as quickly as possible. We are created to have relationships and you want your relationships to be with others who are centered on Christ. These are the people who become you community.

A Day In My Life

2009-10-30T14:37:00.003-05:00

Outside my window......very windy, nearly all the fall leaves are off the trees. An unusually warm day so much so that we were able to spend some time at the park with friends.

I am thinking.....that Lane should be asleep by now. He went to his room for a while and then asked to come out. I let him and I shouldn't have. He's been on the love seat, floor, my bed, my lap and now my bedroom floor. He's not saying anything, but he's really restless. We had a field trip today so he's extra tired, but he is fighting dozing off. He's just content to suck his thumb and lay in the floor near me.

From the learning room.....no seat work took place today. We went to some historical sites in Salem, IN. The Stevens Museum, John Haye Center, Pioneer Village and The Monon Train depot.

I am thankful for...a warm home and air tight home. The wind is blowing so hard outside that I'm glad I don't live in one of those pioneer log cabins with cracks between the logs or chinking.

From the kitchen...I just browned some hamburger for a lasagna that I'm going to make for Sunday evening. I should be making rice crispies for Trunk or Treat at church tomorrow night. I'm going to make 200. I know what I will be doing tomorrow. :)

I am wearing...my favorite jeans, navy blue long sleeve fitted t-shirt. I'm thinking about what I'm going to wear tonight when we go out to dinner with friends. Not sure if I want to stick with fairly casual or dress up a bit.

I am reading...Crazy Love by Frances Chan, Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla Shirer, Believing God by Beth Moore, and the Bible more than I ever have before!

I am hoping....that Croix gets home soon. I miss him when he's at work.

I am creating...hmmm not much right now. My mental energy is pretty much gone for this week. Have some stuff planned for Saturday but I am looking for a Sabbath rest on Sunday. A true Sabbath always revives my sense of creativity.

I am hearing...the dishwasher running, Lane jumping from my chair to my bed (he's still not sleeping), Buddy breathing. Buddy is mom and dad's dog that we have been caring for this week. He's a pug. He has a smashed face so he breathes loud sometime.

Around the house....I didn't get my home blessing in today since we left early for a field trip. The house is needing a bit of attention. It will get it tomorrow. I'm planning on staying home all day. YEA!

One of my favorite things....staying home on Saturday!